| GEOGRAPHY |
| Country name: |
conventional long form: State of Kuwait
conventional short form: Kuwait
local long form: Dawlat al Kuwayt
local short form: Al Kuwayt |
| Capital: |
Kuwait |
| 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: 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 |
| Elavation
Extremes: |
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 306 m |
| Natural
Resources: |
petroleum, fish, shrimp, natural gas |
| GOVERNEMENT |
| Governement
Type: |
republicnominal constitutional monarchy |
| Administratives
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 |
20 years of age; universaladult 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); Crown Prince SAAD al-Abdullah al-Salim Al Sabah
head of government: Prime Minister SABAH al-Ahmad al-Jabir Al Sabah (since 13 July 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior NAWWAF al-Ahmad Al Sabah (since 2003); Deputy Prime Ministers JABIR MUBARAK al-Hamad Al Sabah (since 2001) and Muhammad Dayfallah al-SHARAR (since 2003)
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 6 July 2003 (next to be held NA 2007)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - Islamists 21, government supporters 14, liberals 3, and independents 12; 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 |
| PEOPLE |
| Population: |
2,335,648
note: includes 1,291,354 non-nationals (July 2005 est.) |
| Age structure: |
0-14 years: 27.2% (male 323,382/female 311,700)
15-64 years: 70.1% (male 1,045,589/female 591,243)
65 years and over: 2.7% (male 40,439/female 23,295) (2005 est.) |
| Median age: |
total: 25.86 years
male: 28.05 years
female: 22.12 years (2005 est.) |
| 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%), Christian, Hindu, Parsi, and other 15% |
| Languages: |
Arabic (official), English widely spoken |
| COMUNICATIONS |
| Telephones - main
lines in use: |
486,900 (2003) |
| Telephones - mobile
cellular: |
1.42 million (2003) |
| 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; 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) |
| Television broadcast
stations: |
13 (plus several satellite channels) (1997) |
| Internet country
code: |
.kw |
| Internet hosts: |
3,437 (2001) |
| Internet users: |
567,000 (2003) |
| TRANSPORT |
| Railways: |
|
| Highways: |
total: 4,450 km
paved: 3,587 km
unpaved: 863 km (1999 est.) |
| Waterways: |
|
| Pipelines: |
gas 169 km; oil 540 km; refined products 57 km (2004) |
| Ports and harbors: |
Ash Shu'aybah, Ash Shuwaykh, Kuwait, Mina' 'Abd Allah, Mina' al Ahmadi, Mina' Su'ud |
| Merchant marine: |
total: 39 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,319,082 GRT/3,768,828 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 3, container 6, liquefied gas 5, livestock carrier 5, petroleum tanker 20
registered in other countries: 19 (2005) |
| Airports: |
7 (2004 est.) |
| 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 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with
unpaved runways: |
total: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
| Heliports: |
3 (2004 est.) |
