Map of Kuwait | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide19891990199119921993199419951996199719981999200020012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023 | More stats

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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 dollars to repair oil infrastructure damaged during 1990-91.


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Location: Middle East, at the head of the Persian Gulf, between Iraq and Saudi Arabia

Geographic coordinates

Map reference: Africa, Middle East, Standard Time Zones of the World

Area
Total area total: 17,820 km²
Land: 17,820 km²

Land boundaries: total 464 km, Iraq 242 km, Saudi Arabia 222 km

Coastline: 499 km

Maritime claims
Continental shelf: not specified
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: dry desert; intensely hot summers; short, cool winters

Terrain: flat to slightly undulating desert plain

Elevation

Natural resources: petroleum, fish, shrimp, natural gas

Land use
Arable land: 0%
Permanent crops: 0%
Meadows and pastures: 8%
Forest and woodland: 0%
Other: 92%

Irrigated land: 20 km² (1989 est.)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: NA

Geography
Note: strategic location at head of Persian Gulf


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Population: 1,819,322 (July 1994 est.)
Growth rate: 5.24% (1994 est.)
Growth rate note: this rate reflects the continued post-Gulf crisis return of nationals and expatriates

Nationality: noun:Kuwaiti(s)

Ethnic groups: Kuwaiti 45%, other Arab 35%, South Asian 9%, Iranian 4%, other 7%

Languages: Arabic (official), English widely spoken

Religions: Muslim 85% (Shi'a 30%, Sunni 45%, other 10%), Christian, Hindu, Parsi, and other 15%

Demographic profile

Age structure

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 5.24% (1994 est.)
Note: this rate reflects the continued post-Gulf crisis return of nationals and expatriates

Birth rate: 29.43 births/1000 population (1994 est.)

Death rate: 2.37 deaths/1000 population (1994 est.)

Net migration rate: 25.35 migrant(s)/1000 population (1994 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: some of world's largest and most sophisticated desalination facilities provide much of the water; air and water pollution; desertification

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 12.5 deaths/1000 live births (1994 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 74.99 years
Male: 72.83 years
Female: 77.25 years (1994 est.)

Total fertility rate: 4 children born/woman (1994 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
Total population: 73%
Male: 77%
Female: 67%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: State of Kuwait
Conventional short form:

Government type: nominal constitutional monarchy

Capital: Administrative divisions:5 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah; Al 'Ahmadi, Al Jahrah, Al Kuwayt, Hawalli, Al Farwaniyah

Administrative divisions

Dependent areas

Independence: 19 June 1961 (from UK)

National holiday: National Day, 25 February (1948)

Constitution: 16 November 1962 (some provisions suspended since 29 August 1962)

Legal system: civil law system with Islamic law significant in personal matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: adult males who resided in Kuwait before 1920 and their male descendants at age 21
Note: only 10% of all citizens are eligible to vote

Executive branch
Chief of state: Amir Shaykh 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); Deputy Prime Minister SABAH al-Ahmad al-Jabir Al Sabah (since 17 October 1992)

Legislative branch: Army, Navy, Air Force, National Police Force, National Guard
National Assembly Majlis alumma: dissolved 3 July 1986; new elections were held on 5 October 1992 with a second election in the 14th and 16th constituencies held February 1993

Judicial branch: High Court of Appeal

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation: ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, BDEAC, CAEU, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GATT, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador-designate Ryan CROCKER
From the us chancery: 2,940 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20,008
From the us telephone: [965] 242-4,151 through 4,159
From the us fax: (202) 966-0517
From the us embassy: Bneid al-Gar (opposite the Kuwait International Hotel), Kuwait City
From the us mailing address: P.O. Box 77 SAFAT, 13,001 SAFAT, Kuwait; Unit 69,000, Kuwait; APO AE 9,880-9,000
From the us FAX: [956] 244-2,855

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a black trapezoid based on the hoist side

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Kuwait is a small and relatively open economy with proven crude oil reserves of about 94 billion barrels - 10% of world reserves. Kuwait has rebuilt its war-ravaged petroleum sector; its crude oil production reached at least 2.0 million barrels per day by the end of 1993. The government ran a sizable fiscal deficit in 1993. Petroleum accounts for nearly half of GDP and 90% of export and government revenues.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: 15% (1993 est.)

Real gdp per capita ppp

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: practically none; dependent on imports for food; about 75% of potable water must be distilled or imported

Industries: petroleum, petrochemicals, desalination, food processing, building materials, salt, construction

Industrial production growth rate: NA%; accounts for NA% of GDP

Labor force: 566,000 (1986)
By occupation services: 45.0%
By occupation construction: 20.0%
By occupation trade: 12.0%
By occupation manufacturing: 8.6%
By occupation financeandrealestate: 2.6%
By occupation agriculture: 1.9%
By occupation powerandwater: 1.7%
By occupation mining and quarrying: 1.4%
By occupation note: 70% of labor force non-Kuwaiti (1986)

Unemployment rate: NEGL% (1992 est.)

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget: revenues:$9 billion

Public debt

Taxes and other revenues

Revenue

Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June

Current account balance

Inflation rate consumer prices

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $10.5 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
Commodities: oil
Partners: France 16%, Italy 15%, Japan 12%, UK 11%

Imports: $6 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
Commodities: food, construction materials, vehicles and parts, clothing
Partners: US 35%, Japan 12%, UK 9%, Canada 9%

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $7.2 billion (December 1989 est.)
Note: external debt has grown substantially in 1991 and 1992 to pay for restoration of war damage

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Kuwaiti dinars (KD) per US$1 - 0.2982 (January 1994), 0.3017 (1993), 0.2934 (1992), 0.2843 (1991), 0.2915 (1990), 0.2937 (1989)


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Electricity access

Electricity production: 12.264 billion kWh

Electricity consumption
Per capita: 8,890 kWh (1992)

Electricity exports

Electricity imports

Electricity installed generating capacity

Electricity transmission distribution losses

Electricity generation sources

Petroleum

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones fixed lines

Telephones mobile cellular

Telephone system

Broadcast media

Internet country code

Internet users

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Dollar figure: exchange rate conversion - $2.5 billion, 7.3% of GDP (FY92/93)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 7
Usable: 4
With permanentsurface runways: 4
With runways over 3659 m: 0
With runways 2440-3659 m: 4
With runways 1220-2439 m: 0

Airports with paved runways

Airports with unpaved runways

Heliports

Pipelines: crude oil 877 km; petroleum products 40 km; natural gas 165 km

Railways

Roadways

Waterways

Merchant marine: 46 ships (1,000 GRT or over), totaling 2,153,693 GRT/3,561,568 DWT, cargo 10, container 2, liquefied gas 7, livestock carrier 4, oil tanker 23

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: in April 1991 Iraq officially accepted UN Security Council Resolution 687, which demands that Iraq accept the inviolability of the boundary set forth in its 1963 agreement with Kuwait, ending earlier claims to Bubiyan and Warbah islands, or to all of Kuwait; the 20 May 1993 final report of the UN Iraq/Kuwait Boundary Demarcation Commission was welcomed by the Security Council in Resolution 833 of 27 May 1993, which also reaffirmed that the decisions of the commission on the boundary were final, bringing to a completion the official demarcation of the Iraq-Kuwait boundary; Iraqi officials still refuse to unconditionally recognize Kuwaiti sovereignty of the inviolability of the UN demarcated border; ownership of Qaruh and Umm al Maradim islands disputed by Saudi Arabia

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs