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Bahrain |
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| Background: |
Bahrain's small size and central location among Persian Gulf countries
require it to play a delicate balancing act in foreign affairs among
its larger neighbors. Facing declining oil reserves, Bahrain has turned
to petroleum processing and refining and has transformed itself into
an international banking center. The new amir, installed in 1999, has
pushed economic and political reforms and has worked to improve relations
with the Shi'a community. In February 2001, Bahraini voters approved
a referendum on the National Action Charter - the centerpiece of the
amir's political liberalization program. In February 2002, Amir HAMAD
bin Isa Al Khalifa proclaimed himself king. In October 2002, Bahrainis
elected members of the lower house of Bahrain's reconstituted bicameral
legislature, the National Assembly. |
| Location: |
Middle East, archipelago in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
26 00 N, 50 33 E |
| Map
references: |
Middle
East |
| Area: |
total: 665 sq km
water: 0 sq km
land:
665 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
3.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
| Land
boundaries: |
0 km |
| Coastline: |
161 km |
| Maritime
claims: |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
continental shelf: extending to boundaries to be determined
|
| Climate: |
arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers |
| Terrain: |
mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central escarpment |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point:
Jabal ad Dukhan 122 m |
| Natural
resources: |
oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls |
| Land
use: |
arable land: 4.35%
permanent crops: 4.35%
other: 91.3% (1998 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
50 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
periodic droughts; dust storms |
| Environment
- current issues: |
desertification resulting from the degradation of limited arable land,
periods of drought, and dust storms; coastal degradation (damage to
coastlines, coral reefs, and sea vegetation) resulting from oil spills
and other discharges from large tankers, oil refineries, and distribution
stations; lack of freshwater resources, groundwater and seawater are
the only sources for all water needs |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Geography
- note: |
close to primary Middle Eastern petroleum sources; strategic location
in Persian Gulf, which much of Western world's petroleum must transit
to reach open ocean
|
| Population: |
667,238
note: includes 235,108 non-nationals (July 2003
est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years: 28.8% (male 97,294; female 94,930)
15-64
years: 68% (male 266,351; female 187,473)
65 years and over:
3.2% (male 10,807; female 10,383) (2003 est.) |
| Median
age: |
total: 28.7 years
male: 31.6 years
female:
25.1 years (2002) |
| Population
growth rate: |
1.61% (2003 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
19.02 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
3.99 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
1.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.42 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.04 male(s)/female
total population:
1.28 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
total: 18.59 deaths/1,000 live births
female:
15.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
male: 21.65 deaths/1,000
live births |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total population: 73.72 years
male: 71.28 years
female: 76.24 years (2003 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
2.71 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun: Bahraini(s)
adjective: Bahraini |
| Ethnic
groups: |
Bahraini 63%, Asian 19%, other Arab 10%, Iranian 8% |
| Religions: |
Shi'a Muslim 70%, Sunni Muslim 30% |
| Languages: |
Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu |
| Literacy: |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total
population: 89.1%
male: 91.9%
female: 85%
(2003 est.)
|
| Economy
- overview: |
In Bahrain, petroleum production and refining account for about 60%
of export receipts, 60% of government revenues, and 30% of GDP. With
its highly developed communication and transport facilities, Bahrain
is home to numerous multinational firms with business in the Gulf. Bahrain
is dependent on Saudi Arabia for oil granted as aid. A large share of
exports consists of petroleum products made from refining imported crude.
Construction proceeds on several major industrial projects. Unemployment,
especially among the young, and the depletion of oil and underground
water resources are major long-term economic problems. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power parity - $9.8 billion (2002 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
3.8% (2002 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power parity - $14,000 (2002 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 35%
services:
64% (2001 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
0.5% (2002 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
295,000
note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group
is non-national (1998 est.) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
industry, commerce, and service 79%, government 20%, agriculture 1%
(1997 est.) |
| Unemployment
rate: |
15% (1998 est.) |
| Budget: |
revenues: $1.8 billion
expenditures: $2.2 billion,
including capital expenditures of $700 million (2002 est.) |
| Industries: |
petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, offshore banking,
ship repairing; tourism |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
2% (2000 est.) |
| Electricity
- production: |
6.257 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
other:
0% (2001)
nuclear: 0% |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
5.819 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (2001) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (2001) |
| Oil
- production: |
43,000 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
| Oil
- consumption: |
31,000 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
| Oil
- exports: |
NA (2001) |
| Oil
- imports: |
NA (2001) |
| Oil
- proved reserves: |
62.28 million bbl (January 2002 est.) |
| Natural
gas - proved reserves: |
46 billion cu m (January 2002 est.) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
fruit, vegetables; poultry, dairy products; shrimp, fish |
| Exports: |
$5.8 billion (2002) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
petroleum and petroleum products, aluminum, textiles |
| Exports
- partners: |
India 8.4%, US 3.9%, Saudi Arabia 3.4%, Japan 2.8%, South Korea 2.1%
(2000) |
| Imports: |
$4.2 billion (2002) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
crude oil, machinery, chemicals |
| Imports
- partners: |
Saudi Arabia 28.7%, US 12.5%, UK 6.6%, France 6%, Japan 4% (2000) |
| Debt
- external: |
$3.7 billion (2002) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$150 million; note - $50 million annually since 1992 from each of Saudi
Arabia, UAE, and Kuwait (2002) |
| Currency: |
Bahraini dinar (BHD) |
| Currency
code: |
BHD |
| Exchange
rates: |
Bahraini dinars per US dollar - 0.376 (2002), 0.376 (2001), 0.376 (2000),
0.376 (1999), 0.376 (1998) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year
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