|
|
| Kuwait | Communications | Back to Top |
the quality of service is excellent
domestic: new telephone exchanges offer 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 nation 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
| Kuwait | Culture | Back to Top |
According to Kuwait's 1991 constitution, "freedom of opinion is guaranteed to everyone . . . within the limits of the law." The 1961 Press and Publishing Law establishes fines and prison terms for the publication of banned material, which includes reports critical of the government. In practice, this provision has been used only rarely, and Kuwait is known for its press freedom. In 1986, the government took a number of measures to repress political dissent. New censorship regulations formed a part of these measures. The Ministry of Information requires all publications to submit copy to the ministry in advance for approval and forbids criticism of the ruler and his family, other Arab leaders, or Islam, as well as the acceptance of foreign funding.
The Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) is theoretically independent but in practice is an arm of the Ministry of Information. Newspapers are generally privately owned and consist of seven dailies, five in Arabic and two in English ,as well as a number of weeklies. The largest daily is Al Qabas (Firebrand), which is independent and had a circulation of about 120,000 before the war. 2 smaller dailies, Al Anba (News) and Ar Ray al Amm (Public Opinion), each with a prewar circulation of 80,000, are more conservative and support the government. With regard to other information media, the Ministry of Information operates the 3 stations of Radio Kuwait and the Kuwait Television station.
| Kuwait | Defence | Back to Top |
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.)
| Kuwait | International Disputes | Back to Top |
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
| Kuwait | Economy | Back to Top |
Kuwait is one of the world’s valuableest countries per capita. Its initial prosperity was founded almost completely on oil reserves, which, at an around 98 billion barrels, is roughly one-tenth of the world’s total. Over time, Kuwait used oil earnings to make large investments abroad. By 1990 the nation earned more from foreign investment than from oil exports. The expenses of the Iraqi invasion and postwar reconstruction placed a heavy economic burden on the nation, but by the mid-1990s Kuwait had resumed its preinvasion prosperity. Gross domestic product (GDP) for 1999 was $29.6 billion, giving Kuwait a per capita GDP of $15,370. The labor force totals 763,987 people, only about one-quarter of whom are Kuwaiti citizens.
Kuwait has a developing mixed government-owned and private-enterprise economy. The gross national product (GNP) is not growing as rapidly as the population, but the GNP per capita is nevertheless one of the highest in the world. The gross domestic product (GDP) originates primarily from crude petroleum and natural-gas production and refining.Agriculture in Kuwait is a marginal economic activity and contributes little to the GDP. The little arable land is irrigated from recycled wastewater or brackish groundwater to grow garden produce and farm animal feed. Pastures cover less than one-twelfth of the total land area; principal farm animal are sheep, goats, and cattle.
Kuwait is a small, comparatively 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. accordingly, 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 nation.
| Kuwait | Education | Back to Top |
In 1993 Kuwait's population was highly educated, both in comparison to other states in the region and in comparison to its pre-oil education levels. The impressive education system was brought about by a conscious government decision, made possible by revenues from oil that began in the 1950s, to invest heavily in human resources.
The education system has its problems, however. For example, it relies heavily on foreign teachers. In the late 1950s, almost 90 % were non-Kuwaitis. contempt a long-standing government effort to indigenize education, the system continues to rely heavily on foreigners. The system also often fails to train graduates in fields that correspond to Kuwait's most pressing labor needs. particularly in higher education, the system produces many graduates with training in liberal arts and few with training in vocational subjects.
| Kuwait | Government | Back to Top |
Government: 1962 constitution specifies "hereditary amirate" and fixes succession among male "descendants of the late Mubarak Al Sabah." Ruler in 1994 was Jabir al Ahmad al Jabir Al Sabah, who became amir in 1977. Sixty-member (fifty elected, ten appointed) National Assembly created in 1963, inactive from 1976 to 1980 and again in 1986; replaced in 1990 with partially elected National Council. National Assembly reconstituted by October 1992 elections. Opposition and independent candidates-- including some nineteen Islamists--won thirty to thirty-five seats.
Politics: Al Sabah family dominates political events, but several prominent merchant families also powerful. Opposition, independent, and Islamist elements becoming stronger in early 1990s. Political parties illegal.
Foreign Relations: As result of Iraqi invasion of August 2, 1990, and 1991 Persian Gulf War, Kuwait's relations with the West and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, particularly Saudi Arabia, strengthened to prevent future Iraqi incursion. In addition to GCC, Kuwait belonged to more than twenty international organizations, including United Nations, League of Arab States, Nonaligned Movement, Organization of the Islamic Conference, and Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.
| Kuwait | History | Back to Top |
According to archaeologists, warfare was a common activity 5,000 years ago among the peoples of the area of the Middle East that in modern times became Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and the smaller gulf states. Intermittent hostilities, often based on rivalries between the Persians of the eastern coast of the gulf and the Arabs of the western coast, have occurred ever since. Sargon, Hammurabi, Nebuchadnezzar II, and Alexander the Great were among the best known kings who led warring armies in the 2,500 years before the birth of Christ. During the centuries of Greek and Roman domination, the gulf region was of limited interest to the major powers, but the area's importance as a strategic and trading center rose with the emergence of Islam in the seventh century A.D. The caliphate's military strength was concentrated at Hormuz. Strategically sited at the mouth of the gulf, its authority extended over ports and islands of the Arabian Sea and the Persian Gulf.
The strategic importance of the Persian Gulf became increasingly apparent as the oil industry developed in the twentieth century. Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Iran all claimed some of the territory of the gulf states during the years between World War I and World War II, but Britain's firm resistance to these claims enabled the amirates to maintain their territorial integrity without resort to arms. Except for a small force of the British Indian Navy to ensure observance of the treaty conditions and maintain maritime peace in the gulf, Britain abstained from direct military involvement. As the wealth of the gulf's oil resources became clear, the size of the British military establishment expanded. By the end of the 1960s, Britain had about 9,000 men in Oman, Sharjah (an amirate of the UAE), and Bahrain, where British military headquarters was located. The Trucial Oman Scouts, a mobile force of mixed nationality that Britain supported and British officers commanded, became a symbol of public order in the UAE until Britain's withdrawal from the Persian Gulf in 1971.
| Kuwait | Introduction | Back to Top |
Kuwait (nation), independent state on the north-western coast of the Persian Gulf. It is bordered on the north and north-west by Iraq, on the east by the Persian Gulf, and on the south by Saudi Arabia. The nation's total area, including the islands of Bubiyan, Warbah, and Faylakah, is 17,818 sq km (6,880 sq mi). The national capital and chief port is Kuwait City. From August 1990 to February 1991, Iraq, in defiance of the United Nations Security Council, annexed and occupied Kuwait, claiming it as Iraq's 19th province. This action led to the Gulf War, which liberated the nation. In November 1994, Iraq formally accepted the UN-demarcated border with Kuwait which had been spelled out in Security Council Resolutions made in 1991 and 1993; this formally ends earlier claims to Kuwait and to Bubiyan and Warbah islands.
Official Name- State of Kuwait| Kuwait | Land | Back to Top |
N/A
| Kuwait | Legal | Back to Top |
Legal system: civil law system with Islamic law remarkable in personal matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction vote: 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 administrator 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: % 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
| Kuwait | organization | Back to Top |
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
| Kuwait | People | Back to Top |
In the summer of 1990, Kuwait had an around population of 2,155,000. The most dramatic division in this preinvasion population was that between the national population of Kuwaiti citizens and the larger population, more than 60 % of the total population, of foreign workers.
2001 Kuwait had an around population of 2,041,961. The average population density was 115 persons per sq km .Most of the population is concentrated in cities near or along the Persian Gulf coast. around 45 % of the people are native Kuwaitis, while the remainder of the population, for the most part, are foreign workers. The majority of immigrants are from other Arab countries as well as Iran, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines. Kuwait also has a remarkable population classified as bidun .Arabic, the official language, is spoken by the majority of Kuwait's population; Persian and English also are spoken. Nearly all the nation's population is urban. The annual rate of growth traditionally has been high and is mainly due to immigration. Citizenship, is reserved by the government for native Kuwaitis and for those who can prove Kuwaiti ancestry from before 1920.
| Kuwait | Politics | Back to Top |
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
| Kuwait | Provinces | Back to Top |
5 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Ahmadi, Al Farwaniyah, Al 'Asimah, Al Jahra', Hawalli
| Mapzones | Ask Babynames | Webmaster | Actress | Map | Kids |
| Kuwait | Time | Back to Top |
| Kuwait | Currency and General Information | Back to Top |
| Kuwait Dinars | United States Dollars |
| 1.00 KWD | 3.25309 USD |
| 0.307400 KWD | 1 USD |
| Countries Currency Unit | USD/Unit | Units/USD | |
| DZD | Algeria Dinars | 0.0129554 | 77.1877 |
| USD | United States Dollars | 1.00000 | 1.00000 |
| ARS | Argentina Pesos | 0.341293 | 2.93004 |
| AUD | Australia Dollars | 0.533413 | 1.87472 |
| ATS | Austria Schillings ** | 0.0632609 | 15.8076 |
| BSD | Bahamas Dollars | 1.00000 | 1.00000 |
| BBD | Barbados Dollars | 0.502513 | 1.99000 |
| BEF | Belgium Francs ** | 0.0215788 | 46.3417 |
| BMD | Bermuda Dollars | 1.00000 | 1.00000 |
| BRL | Brazil Reals | 0.430318 | 2.32386 |
| GBP | United Kingdom Pounds | 1.42399 | 0.702251 |
| BGL | Bulgaria Leva | 0.447293 | 2.23567 |
| CAD | Canada Dollars | 0.627606 | 1.59336 |
| CLP | Chile Pesos | 0.00152392 | 656.202 |
| CNY | China Yuan Renminbi | 0.120813 | 8.27726 |
| CYP | Cyprus Pounds | 1.49883 | 0.667186 |
| CZK | Czech Republic Koruny | 0.0281883 | 35.4758 |
| DKK | Denmark Kroner | 0.117155 | 8.53568 |
| XCD | East Caribbean Dollars | 0.370370 | 2.70000 |
| EGP | Egypt Pounds | 0.217271 | 4.60255 |
| EUR | Euro | 0.870489 | 1.14878 |
| FJD | Fiji Dollars | 0.447227 | 2.23600 |
| FIM | Finland Markkaa ** | 0.146406 | 6.83034 |
| FRF | France Francs ** | 0.132705 | 7.53550 |
| DEM | Germany Deutsche Marks ** | 0.445074 | 2.24682 |
| XAU | Gold Ounces | 301.977 | 0.00331151 |
| GRD | Greece Drachmae ** | 0.00255463 | 391.447 |
| HKD | Hong Kong Dollars | 0.128215 | 7.79939 |
| HUF | Hungary Forint | 0.00358416 | 279.006 |
| ISK | Iceland Kronur | 0.00999868 | 100.013 |
| INR | India Rupees | 0.0205205 | 48.7319 |
| IDR | Indonesia Rupiahs | 0.000102055 | 9,798.61 |
| IEP | Ireland Pounds ** | 1.10529 | 0.904738 |
| ILS | Israel New Shekels | 0.212386 | 4.70841 |
| ITL | Italy Lire ** | 0.000449570 | 2,224.35 |
| JMD | Jamaica Dollars | 0.0210041 | 47.6099 |
| JPY | Japan Yen | 0.00754183 | 132.594 |
| JOD | Jordan Dinars | 1.41057 | 0.708931 |
| LBP | Lebanon Pounds | 0.000660937 | 1,513.00 |
| LUF | Luxembourg Francs ** | 0.0215788 | 46.3417 |
| MYR | Malaysia Ringgits | 0.263330 | 3.79751 |
| MXN | Mexico Pesos | 0.111007 | 9.00848 |
| NZD | New Zealand Dollars | 0.440474 | 2.27028 |
| NOK | Norway Kroner | 0.113022 | 8.84780 |
| NLG | Netherlands Guilders ** | 0.395011 | 2.53158 |
| PKR | Pakistan Rupees | 0.0166945 | 59.9000 |
| PHP | Philippines Pesos | 0.0196386 | 50.9202 |
| XPT | Platinum Ounces | 510.962 | 0.00195709 |
| PLN | Poland Zlotych | 0.243488 | 4.10699 |
| PTE | Portugal Escudos ** | 0.00434198 | 230.310 |
| ROL | Romania Lei | 0.0000303433 | 32,956.21 |
| RUR | Russia Rubles | 0.0321342 | 31.1195 |
| SAR | Saudi Arabia Riyals | 0.266668 | 3.74998 |
| XAG | Silver Ounces | 4.65692 | 0.214734 |
| SGD | Singapore Dollars | 0.542540 | 1.84318 |
| SKK | Slovakia Koruny | 0.0208441 | 47.9751 |
| ZAR | South Africa Rand | 0.0883340 | 11.3207 |
| KRW | South Korea Won | 0.000759354 | 1,316.91 |
| ESP | Spain Pesetas ** | 0.00523174 | 191.141 |
| XDR | IMF Special Drawing Rights | 1.24862 | 0.800882 |
| SDD | Sudan Dinars | 0.00384615 | 260.000 |
| SEK | Sweden Kronor | 0.0964189 | 10.3714 |
| CHF | Switzerland Francs | 0.593789 | 1.68410 |
| TWD | Taiwan New Dollars | 0.0286531 | 34.9002 |
| THB | Thailand Baht | 0.0230087 | 43.4619 |
| TTD | Trinidad and Tobago Dollars | 0.163399 | 6.12000 |
| TRL | Turkey Liras | 0.000000763622 | 1,309,549.07 |
| VEB | Venezuela Bolivares | 0.00108696 | 920.000 |
| ZMK | Zambia Kwacha | 0.000239866 | 4,169.00 |
| Kuwait : Geographic coordinates | 29 30 N, 45 45 E |
| Kuwait : Population growth rate | 3.38% |
| Kuwait : Birth rate | 21.91 births/1,000 population |
| Kuwait : Death rate | 2.45 deaths/1,000 population |
| Kuwait : People living with HIV/AIDS | N/A |
| Kuwait : Independence | 19 June 1961 |
| Kuwait : National holiday | National Day, 25 February |
| Kuwait : Constitution | 11 November 1962 |
| Kuwait : GDP | purchasing power parity - $29.3 billion |
| Kuwait : GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $15,000 |
| Kuwait : Electricity - consumption | 29.357 billion kWh |
| Kuwait : Exports | $23.2 billion oil and refined products, fertilizers |
| Kuwait : Imports | $7.6 billion food, construction materials, vehicles and parts, clothing |
| Kuwait : Telephones | 412,000 |
| Kuwait : Mobile cellular | 210,000 |
| Kuwait : Radio broadcast stations | AM 6, FM 11, shortwave 1 |
| Kuwait : Radios | 1.175 million |
| Kuwait : Television broadcast stations | 13 |
| Kuwait : Televisions | 875,000 |
| Kuwait : Internet country code | .kw |
| Kuwait : Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 3 |
| Kuwait : Internet users | 100,000 |
| Kuwait : Railways | N/A |
| Kuwait : Highways | 4,450 km |
| Kuwait : Waterways | N/A |
| Kuwait : Pipelines | crude oil 877 km; petroleum products 40 km; natural gas 165 km |
| Kuwait : Ports and harbors | Ash Shu'aybah, Ash Shuwaykh, Kuwait, Mina' 'Abd Allah, Mina' al Ahmadi, Mina' Su'ud |
| Kuwait : Merchant marine | 45 ships |
| Kuwait : Airports | 8 |
| Kuwait : Heliports | 3 |
| Kuwait : Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, National Police Force, National Guard, Coast Guard |
| Kuwait : Military expenditures | $1.9 billion |