listed in Overview: CIA World Factbook for the year 2001
The following is reproduced from the CIA World Factbook (where additional information is available). It is compiled and published annually by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the United States government.
The text is unchanged, except that the "Map Reference" section is omitted. Otherwise, only the layout and order was adapted for this website.
This entry in the original Factbook for the year 2001 was based on information available at 1 January 2001.
Background: 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 completely liberated Kuwait in four days. Kuwait has spent more than $5 billion to repair oil infrastructure damaged during 1990-91.
Economic Overview: Kuwait is a small, relatively open economy with proved crude oil reserves of about 94 billion barrels - 10% of world reserves. Petroleum accounts for nearly half of GDP, 90% of export revenues, and 75% of government income. Kuwait's climate limits agricultural development. Consequently, with the exception of fish, it depends almost wholly on food imports. About 75% of potable water must be distilled or imported. Higher oil prices put the FY99/00 budget into a $2 billion surplus. The FY00/01 budget covers only nine months because of a change in the fiscal year. The budget for FY01/02, which begins 1 April, contains higher expenditures for salaries, construction, and other general categories. Kuwait continues its discussions with foreign oil companies to develop fields in the northern part of the country.
| Location: | Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iraq and Saudi Arabia |
| Geographic coordinates: | 29 30 N, 45 45 E |
| 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:
464 km
border countries: Iraq 242 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%
permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 8% forests and woodland: 0% other: 92% (1993 est.) |
| Irrigated land: | 20 sq km (1993 est.) |
| Natural hazards: | Sudden cloudbursts are common from October to April; they bring inordinate amounts of 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:
Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Endangered Species, Marine Dumping |
| Geography - note: | Strategic location at head of Persian Gulf |
| Population: | 2,041,961
note: Includes 1,159,913 non-nationals (July 2001 est.) |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years:
28.76% (male 299,080; female 288,125)
15-64 years: 68.82% (male 897,839; female 507,527) 65 years and over: 2.42% (male 31,843; female 17,547) (2001 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 3.38% (2001 est.)
note: This rate reflects a return to pre-Gulf crisis immigration of expatriates |
| Birth rate: | 21.91 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Death rate: | 2.45 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | 14.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | At birth:
1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.77 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.81 male(s)/female total population: 1.51 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | 11.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth: | Total population:
76.27 years
male: 75.42 years female: 77.15 years (2001 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 3.2 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | 0.12% (1999 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 45%, Shi'a 40%), Christian, Hindu, Parsi, and other 15% |
| Languages: | Arabic (official), English widely spoken |
| Literacy: | Definition:
Age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 78.6% male: 82.2% female: 74.9% (1995 est.) |
| 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: | Nominal constitutional monarchy |
| Capital: | Kuwait |
| Administrative divisions: | 5 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Ahmadi, Al Farwaniyah, Al 'Asimah, Al Jahra', Hawalli |
| 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: | Adult males who have been naturalized for 30 years or more or have resided in Kuwait since before 1920 and their male descendants at age 21
note: only 10% of all citizens are eligible to vote; in 1996, naturalized citizens who do not meet the pre-1920 qualification but have been naturalized for 30 years were eligible to vote for the first time |
| Executive branch: | Chief of state:
Amir JABIR al-Ahmad al-Jabir Al Sabah (since 31 December 1977)
head of government: Prime Minister and Crown Prince SAAD al-Abdallah al-Salim Al Sabah (since 8 February 1978); First Deputy Prime Minister SABAH al-Ahmad al-Jabir Al Sabah (since 17 October 1992); Deputy Prime Ministers JABIR MUBARAK al-Hamud Al Sabah (since NA) and MUHAMMAD KHALID al-Hamed Al Sabah (since NA) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister and approved by the monarch elections: None; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the monarch |
| Legislative branch: | Unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Umma (50 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 3 July 1999 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 50; note - all cabinet ministers are also ex officio members of the National Assembly |
| Judicial branch: | High Court of Appeal |
| Political parties and leaders: | None; formation of political parties is illegal |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | Several political groups act as de facto parties: Bedouins, merchants, Sunni and Shi'a activists, and secular leftists and nationalists |
| International organization participation: | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, BDEAC, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | Chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant)
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 James A. LAROCCO
embassy: Bayan, near the Bayan palace, Kuwait City mailing address: P. O. Box 77 Safat, 13001 Safat, Kuwait Unit 69000, APO AE 09880-9000 telephone: [965] 539-5307 FAX: [965] 538-0282 |
| Flag: |
|
| Flag description: | Three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a black trapezoid based on the hoist side |
| GDP: | Purchasing power parity - $29.3 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate: | 6% (2000 est.) |
| GDP - per capita: | Purchasing power parity - $15,000 (2000 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector: | Agriculture:
0%
industry: 55% services: 45% (1996) |
| Population below poverty line: | NA% |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | Lowest 10%:
NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | 3% (2000) |
| Labor force: | 1.3 million (1998 est.)
note: 68% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (July 1998 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation: | Agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
| Unemployment rate: | 1.8% (official 1996 est.) |
| Budget: | Revenues:
$11.5 billion
expenditures: $17.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY01/02) |
| Industries: | Petroleum, petrochemicals, desalination, food processing, construction materials |
| Industrial production growth rate: | 1% (1997 est.) |
| Electricity - production: | 31.567 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production by source: | Fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity - consumption: | 29.357 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - exports: | 0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - imports: | 0 kWh (1999) |
| Agriculture - products: | Practically no crops; fish |
| Exports: | $23.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Exports - commodities: | Oil and refined products, fertilizers |
| Exports - partners: | Japan 23%, US 12%, Singapore 8%, Netherlands 7% (1999) |
| Imports: | $7.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Imports - commodities: | Food, construction materials, vehicles and parts, clothing |
| Imports - partners: | US 15%, Japan 10%, UK 7%, Germany 7% (1999) |
| Debt - external: | $6.9 billion (2000 est.) |
| Economic aid - recipient: | $27.6 million (1995) |
| Currency: | Kuwaiti dinar (KWD) |
| Currency code: | KWD |
| Exchange rates: | Kuwaiti dinars per US dollar - 0.3057 (January 2001), 0.3067 (2000), 0.3044 (1999), 0.3047 (1998), 0.3033 (1997), 0.2994 (1996) |
| Fiscal year: | 1 April - 31 March |
| Telephones - main lines in use: | 412,000 (1997) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular: | 210,000 (1997) |
| 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, open wire, and fiber-optic cable; a cellular telephone system operates throughout Kuwait, and the country is well supplied with pay telephones international: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; linked to Bahrain, Qatar, UAE via the Fiber-Optic Gulf (FOG) cable; 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) |
| Radios: | 1.175 million (1997) |
| Television broadcast stations: | 13 (plus several satellite channels) (1997) |
| Televisions: | 875,000 (1997) |
| Internet country code: | .kw |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs): | 3 (2000) |
| Internet users: | 100,000 (2000) |
| Railways: | 0 km |
| Highways: | Total:
4,450 km
paved: 3,590 km unpaved: 860 km (1999 est.) |
| Waterways: | None |
| Pipelines: | Crude oil 877 km; petroleum products 40 km; natural gas 165 km |
| Ports and harbors: | Ash Shu'aybah, Ash Shuwaykh, Kuwait, Mina' 'Abd Allah, Mina' al Ahmadi, Mina' Su'ud |
| Merchant marine: | Total:
45 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,461,072 GRT/3,966,645 DWT
ships by type: Bulk 1, cargo 6, container 6, liquefied gas 7, livestock carrier 5, petroleum tanker 20 (2000 est.) |
| Airports: | 8 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways: | Total:
4
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways: | Total:
4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
| Heliports: | 3 (2000 est.) |
| Military branches: | Army, Navy, Air Force, National Police Force, National Guard, Coast Guard |
| Military manpower - military age: | 18 years of age |
| Military manpower - availability: | Males age 15-49: 780,559 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service: | Males age 15-49: 466,521 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually: | Males: 18,309 (2001 est.) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure: | $1.9 billion (FY00/01) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP: | 8.7% (FY00/01) |
| Disputes - international: | In November 1994, Iraq formally accepted the UN-demarcated border with Kuwait which had been spelled out in Security Council Resolutions 687 (1991), 773 (1993), and 883 (1993); this formally ends earlier claims to Kuwait and to Bubiyan and Warbah islands |
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