Statistical information Bahrain 2017

Bahrain in the World

Bahrain - Introduction 2017

In 1783 the Sunni Al-Khalifa family took power in Bahrain. In order to secure these holdings it entered into a series of treaties with the UK during the 19th century that made Bahrain a British protectorate. The archipelago attained its independence in 1971. A steady decline in oil production and reserves since 1970 prompted Bahrain to take steps to diversify its economy in the process developing successful petroleum processing and refining aluminum production and hospitality and retail sectors and also to become a leading regional banking center especially with respect to Islamic finance. Bahrain's small size central location among Gulf countries and proximity to Iran require it to play a delicate balancing act in foreign affairs among its larger neighbors.
The Sunni-led government has long struggled to manage relations with its large Shia-majority population. In early 2011 amid Arab uprisings elsewhere in the region the Bahraini Government confronted similar pro-democracy and reform protests at home with police and military action including deploying Gulf Cooperation Council security forces to Bahrain. Political talks throughout 2014 between the government and opposition and loyalist political groups failed to reach an agreement prompting opposition political societies to boycott parliamentary and municipal council elections in late 2014. Ongoing dissatisfaction with the political status quo continues to factor into sporadic clashes between demonstrators and security forces.

Bahrain - Geography 2017

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Location: Middle East archipelago in the Persian Gulf east of Saudi Arabia

Geographic coordinates: 26 00 N 50 33 E

Map reference: Middle East

Area
Total: 760 km²
Land: 760 km²
Water: 0 km²
Rank: 188
Comparative: 3.5 times the size of Washington DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 161 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 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
Mean elevation: NA
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m: highest point: Jabal ad Dukhan 135 m

Natural resources: oil associated and nonassociated natural gas fish pearls

Land use

Land use
Agricultural land: 11.3%

arable land: 2.1%
permanent crops: 3.9%
permanent pasture: 5.3%

Forest: 0.7%
Other: 88%

Irrigated land: 40 km² (2012)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: periodic droughts; dust storms

Geography
Note: close to primary Middle Eastern petroleum sources; strategic location in Persian Gulf through which much of the Western world's petroleum must transit to reach open ocean

Bahrain - People 2017

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Population
Distribution: smallest population of the Gulf States but urbanization rate exceeds 90%; largest settlement concentration is found on the far northern end of the island in and around Manamah and Al Muharraq: 1,410,942 (July 2017 est.)
Note: immigrants make up approximately 50% of the total population according to UN data
Rank: 155
Growth rate: 2.26% (2017 est.)
Growth rate rank: 34
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: Bahraini
Adjective: Bahraini

Ethnic groups: Bahraini 46% Asian 45.5% other Arab 4.7% African 1.6% European 1% other 1.2% (includes Gulf Co-operative country nationals North and South Americans and Oceanians) (2010 est.)

Languages: Arabic (official) English Farsi Urdu

Religions: Muslim 70.3% Christian 14.5% Hindu 9.8% Buddhist 2.5% Jewish 0.6% folk religion .1 unaffiliated 1.9% other 0.2% (2010 est.)

Demographic profile

Age structure

Age structure
0-14 years: 19.08%
15-24 years: 15.65%
25-54 years: 56.04%
55-64 years: 6.28%
65 years and over: 2.95% (2017 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 30.2
Youth dependency ratio: 27.1
Elderly dependency ratio: 3
Potential support ratio: 33.1

Median age
Total: 32.3 years
Male: 33.8 years
Female: 29.5 years
Rank: 99

Population growth rate: 2.26% (2017 est.)
Rank: 34

Birth rate: 13.3 births/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 145

Death rate: 2.8 deaths/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 223

Net migration rate: 12.1 migrant(s)/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 7

Population distribution: smallest population of the Gulf States but urbanization rate exceeds 90%; largest settlement concentration is found on the far northern end of the island in and around Manamah and Al Muharraq

Urbanization
Urban population: 88.9% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 1.77% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: MANAMA (capital) 411,000 (2015)

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)
International agreements party to: Biodiversity Climate Change Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Desertification Hazardous Wastes Law of the Sea Ozone Layer Protection Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male/female
0-14 years: 1.03 male/female
15-24 years: 1.3 male/female
25-54 years: 1.88 male/female
55-64 years: 1.81 male/female
65 years and over: 0.95 male/female
Total population: 1.54 male/female

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 8.9 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 9.9 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 7.9 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 147

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 79 years
Male: 76.8 years
Female: 81.3 years
Rank: 50

Total fertility rate: 1.75 children born/woman (2017 est.)
Rank: 164

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source:

urban: 100% of population
rural: 100% of population
total: 100% of population
urban: 0% of population
rural: 0% of population
total: 0% of population (2015 est.)

Current health expenditure

Physicians density: 0.94 physicians/1000 population (2014)

Hospital bed density: 2.1 beds/1000 population (2012)

Sanitation facility access:

urban: 99.2% of population
rural: 99.2% of population
total: 99.2% of population
urban: 0.8% of population
rural: 0.8% of population
total: 0.8% of population (2015 est.)

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: .01% (2016 est.)
People living with hivaids: 500 (2016 est.)
Deaths: 100 (2016 est.)

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 29.8% (2016)
Rank: 25

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures: 2.6% of GDP (2012)
Rank: 153

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 95.7%
Male: 96.9%
Female: 93.5%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment

Bahrain - Government 2017

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Country name
Conventional long form: Kingdom of Bahrain
Conventional short form: Bahrain
Local long form: Mamlakat al Bahrayn
Local short form: Al Bahrayn
Former: Dilmun State of Bahrain
Etymology: the name means 'the two seas' in Arabic and refers to the water bodies surrounding the archipelago

Government type: constitutional monarchy

Capital
Name: Manama
Geographic coordinates: 26 14 N 50 34 E
Time difference: UTC+3

Administrative divisions: 4 governorates (muhafazat singular - muhafazah); Asimah (Capital) Janubiyah (Southern) Muharraq Shamaliyah (Northern)
Note: each governorate administered by an appointed governor

Dependent areas

Independence: 15 August 1971 (from the UK)

National holiday: National Day 16 December (1971); note - 15 August 1971 was the date of independence from the UK 16 December 1971 was the date of independence from British protection

Constitution
History: adopted 14 February 2002
Amendments: proposed by the king or by at least 15 members of either chamber of the National Assembly followed by submission to an Assembly committee for review and if approved submitted to the government for restatement as drafts; passage requires a two-thirds majority vote by the membership of both chambers and validation by the king; constitutional articles on the state religion state language (Arabic) and the monarchy and “inherited rule” cannot be amended; amended 2012 2017 (2017)

Legal system: mixed legal system of Islamic law English common law Egyptian civil criminal and commercial codes; customary law

International law organization participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Bahrain
Dual citizenship recognized: no
Residency requirement for naturalization: 25 years; 15 years for Arab nationals

Suffrage: 20 years of age; universal; note - Bahraini Cabinet in May 2011 endorsed a draft law lowering eligibility to 18 years

Executive branch
Chief of state: King HAMAD bin Isa Al-Khalifa ; Crown Prince SALMAN bin Hamad Al-Khalifa (son of the monarch born 21 October 1969)
Head of government: Prime Minister KHALIFA bin Salman Al-Khalifa ; First Deputy Prime Minister SALMAN bin Hamad Al Khalifa (since 11 March 2013); Deputy Prime Ministers MUHAMMAD bin Mubarak Al-Khalifa (since September 2005) Jawad bin Salim al-ARAIDH ALI bin Khalifa bin Salman Al-Khalifa (since 11 December 2006) KHALID bin Abdallah Al Khalifa (since November 2010)
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch
Electionsappointments: the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch

Legislative branch
Description: bicameral National Assembly consists of the Consultative Council or Majlis al Shura and the Council of Representatives or Majlis al Nuwab (40 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by absolute majority vote in 2 rounds if needed; members serve 4-year renewable terms)
Elections: Council of Representatives - last held in two rounds on 23 and 29 November 2014
Election results: Council of Representatives - percent of vote by society - NA; seats by society - Al-Asalah 2 Islamic Minbar (Sunni Muslim Brotherhood) 1 independent 37; note - Bahrain has societies rather than parties

Judicial branch
Highest court: Court of Cassation or Supreme Court of Appeal ; Constitutional Court (consists of the president and 6 members); High Sharia Court of Appeal (court sittings include the president and at least one judge); appeals beyond the High Sharia Court of Appeal are heard by the Supreme Court of Appeal
Note: the judiciary of Bahrain is divided into civil law courts and sharia law courts; sharia courts are further divided into Sunni Muslim and Shia Muslim
Judge selection and term of office: Court of Cassation judges appointed by royal decree and serve for a specified tenure; Constitutional Court president and members appointed by the Higher Judicial Council a body chaired by the monarch and includes judges from the Court of Cassation sharia law courts and Civil High Courts of Appeal; members serve 9-year terms; High Sharia Court of Appeal member appointment and tenure NA
Subordinate courts: Civil High Courts of Appeal; middle and lower civil courts; High Sharia Court of Appeal; Senior Sharia Court; military courts

Political parties and leaders
Note: political parties are prohibited but political societies were legalized under a July 2005 law:

National Democratic Assembly [Hasan AL-ALI]
National Dialogue Society
National Fraternity Society [Musa AL-ANSARI]
National Islamic Minbar [Ali AHMAD]
National Progressive Tribune [Abd al-Nabi SALMAN]
National Unity Gathering [Abdullatif AL-MAHMOOD]
Unitary National Democratic Assemblage [Fadhil ABBAS]

International organization participation: ABEDA AFESD AMF CAEU CICA FAO G-77 GCC IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC (national committees) ICRM IDA IDB IFC IFRCS IHO ILO IMF IMO IMSO Interpol IOC IOM (observer) IPU ISO ITSO ITU ITUC (NGOs) LAS MIGA NAM OAPEC OIC OPCW PCA UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UNWTO UPU WCO WFTU (NGOs) WHO WIPO WMO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Abdulla bin Rashid AL KHALIFA
In the us chancery: 3,502 International Drive NW Washington DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] 342-1111
In the us FAX: [1] 362-2,192
In the us consulate general: New York
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador William V. ROEBUCK
From the us embassy: Building
From the us mailing address: PSC 451 Box 660 FPO AE 9,834-5,100; international mail: American Embassy Box 26,431 Manama
From the us telephone: [973] 1724-2,700
From the us FAX: [973] 1727-2,594

Flag description

: red the traditional color for flags of Persian Gulf states with a white serrated band (five white points) on the hoist side; the five points represent the five pillars of Islam
Note: until 2002 the flag had eight white points but this was reduced to five to avoid confusion with the Qatari flag

National symbols: a red field surmounted by a white serrated band with five white points; national colors: red white

National anthem
Name: 'Bahrainona'
Lyrics and music: unknown
Note: adopted 1971; although Mohamed Sudqi AYYASH wrote the original lyrics they were changed in 2002 following the transformation of Bahrain from an emirate to a kingdom

National heritage

Bahrain - Economy 2017

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Economy overview:

Low oil prices have generated a budget deficit of at least a $4 billion deficit in 2016 nearly 14% of GDP. Bahrain has few options for covering this deficit with meager foreign assets and a constrained borrowing ability. In the last year the three major US credit agencies downgraded Bahrain’s sovereign debt rating to “junk” status citing persistently low oil prices and the government’s inability to more effectively cut spending.
Oil comprises 86% of Bahraini budget revenues despite past efforts to diversify its economy and to build communication and transport facilities for multinational firms with business in the Gulf. As part of its diversification plans Bahrain implemented a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the US in August 2006 the first FTA between the US and a Gulf state.
Other major economic activities are production of aluminum - Bahrain's second biggest export after oil - finance and construction. Bahrain continues to seek new natural gas supplies as feedstock to support its expanding petrochemical and aluminum industries.
In 2011 Bahrain experienced economic setbacks as a result of domestic unrest driven by the majority Shia population; however the economy recovered in 2012-15 partly as a result of improved tourism. In addition to addressing its current fiscal woes Bahraini authorities face the long-term challenge of boosting Bahrain’s regional competitiveness — especially regarding industry finance and tourism — and reconciling revenue constraints with popular pressure to maintain generous state subsidies and a large public sector. Over the past year the government lifted subsidies on meat diesel kerosene and gasoline and announced new higher prices for electricity and water although it plans to roll these increases out more gradually than previous subsidy cuts.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:

$66.92 billion (2016 est.)
$64.17 billion (2015 est.)
$61.71 billion (2014 est.)

Note: data are in 2016 dollars
Rank: 98

Real gdp growth rate:

3% (2016 est.)
2.9% (2015 est.)
4.4% (2014 est.)

Rank: 97

Real gdp per capita:

$50,700 (2016 est.)
$50,200 (2015 est.)
$49,800 (2014 est.)

Note: data are in 2016 dollars
Rank: 24

Gross national saving:

21% of GDP (2016 est.)
22% of GDP (2015 est.)
31.4% of GDP (2014 est.)

Rank: 83

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 45.6%
Government consumption: 16%
Investment in fixed capital: 25.2%
Investment in inventories: 2.9%
Exports of goods and services: 75.9%
Imports of goods and services: -65.6%

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 0.3%
Industry: 37.3%
Services: 62.3%

Agriculture products: fruit vegetables; poultry dairy products; shrimp fish

Industries: petroleum processing and refining aluminum smelting iron pelletization fertilizers Islamic and offshore banking insurance ship repairing tourism

Industrial production growth rate: 2.8% (2016 est.)
Rank: 89

Labor force: 808,900
Note: excludes unemployed; 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national
Rank: 150
By occupation agriculture: 1%
By occupation industry: 32%
By occupation services: 67%

Labor force

Unemployment rate:

3.7% (2016 est.)
4.3% (2013 est.)

Note: official estimate; actual rate is higher
Rank: 50

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: NA%

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: NA%
Highest 10: NA%

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $5.047 billion
Expenditures: $9.394 billion
Surplus or deficit: -13.6% of GDP (2016 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 208

Taxes and other revenues: 15.8% of GDP (2016 est.)
Rank: 180

Public debt:

72% of GDP (2016 est.)
60.3% of GDP (2015 est.)

Rank: 48

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:

2.8% (2016 est.)
1.8% (2015 est.)

Rank: 140

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate:

5.2% (31 December 2016 est.)
4.78% (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 141

Stock of narrow money:

$9.157 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$9.105 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 85

Stock of broad money:

$27.36 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$27.02 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 79

Stock of domestic credit:

$29.08 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$28.29 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 79

Market value of publicly traded shares:

$19.25 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
$22.07 billion (31 December 2014 est.)
$18.57 billion (31 December 2013 est.)

Rank: 67

Current account balance:

$-1.493 billion (2016 est.)
$-752.1 million (2015 est.)

Rank: 142

Exports:

$12.78 billion (2016 est.)
$16.54 billion (2015 est.)

Rank: 77
Commodities: petroleum and petroleum products aluminum textiles
Partners: Saudi Arabia 18.3% UAE 17.5% US 11.1% Japan 8.7% Qatar 4.8% China 4.2% (2016)

Imports:

$13.59 billion (2016 est.)
$15.71 billion (2015 est.)

Rank: 86
Commodities: crude oil machinery chemicals
Partners: China 9.7% US 8.6% UAE 7.4% Japan 6.1% Saudi Arabia 5.5% (2016)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:

$3.094 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$3.387 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 105

Debt external:

$42.55 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$40.07 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 68

Stock of direct foreign investment at home:

$21.56 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$21.28 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 76

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad:

$10.5 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$10.33 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 61

Exchange rates:

Bahraini dinars (BHD) per US dollar -
0.376 (2016 est.)
0.376 (2015 est.)
0.376 (2014 est.)
0.376 (2013 est.)
0.376 (2012 est.)

Bahrain - Energy 2017

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Electricity
Access population without electricity: 41,317
Access electrification total population: 98%
Access electrification urban areas: 98%
Access electrification rural areas: 93%
Production: 26.78 billion kWh (2015 est.)
Production rank: 69
Consumption: 26.09 billion kWh (2015 est.)
Consumption rank: 66
Exports: 213 million kWh (2015 est.)
Exports rank: 75
Imports: 205 million kWh (2015 est.)
Imports rank: 93
Installed generating capacity: 3.928 million kW (2015 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 90
Generation sources fossil fuels: 99.8% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 27
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 45
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 0% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 160
Generation sources other renewable sources: 0.2% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 158

Coal

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 50,000 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 53
Crude oil exports: 0 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 91
Crude oil imports: 223,900 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 28
Crude oil proven reserves: 124.6 million bbl (1 January 2017 es)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 70

Crude oil

Refined petroleum
Products production: 270,100 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Products production rank: 45
Products consumption: 58,000 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products consumption rank: 98
Products exports: 244,500 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Products exports rank: 30
Products imports: 13,320 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Products imports rank: 133

Natural gas
Production: 15.5 billion m³ (2015 est.)
Production rank: 36
Consumption: 21.92 billion m³ (2015 est.)
Consumption rank: 42
Exports: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Exports rank: 64
Imports: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Imports rank: 87
Proven reserves: 92.03 billion m³ (1 January 2017 es)
Proven reserves rank: 55

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 37 million Mt (2013 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 71

Energy consumption per capita

Bahrain - Communication 2017

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Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 287,203
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 21
Fixed lines rank: 118
Mobile cellular total: 2,994,865
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 217
Mobile cellular rank: 148

Telephone system
General assessment: modern system
Domestic: modern fiber-optic integrated services; digital network with rapidly growing use of mobile-cellular telephones
International: country code - 973; landing point for the Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe submarine cable network that provides links to Asia Middle East Europe and US; tropospheric scatter to Qatar and UAE; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; satellite earth station - 1 (2016)

Broadcast media: state-run Bahrain Radio and Television Corporation (BRTC) operates 5 terrestrial TV networks and several radio stations; satellite TV systems provide access to international broadcasts; 1 private FM station directs broadcasts to Indian listeners; radio and TV broadcasts from countries in the region are available (2009)

Internet
Country code: .bh
Users total: 1,351,326
Users percent of population: 98.0%
Users rank: 116

Broadband fixed subscriptions

Bahrain - Military 2017

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Military expenditures:

4.59% of GDP (2015)
4.42% of GDP (2014)
4.14% of GDP (2013)
3.84% of GDP (2012)
3.59% of GDP (2011)

Rank: 19

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for voluntary military service; 15 years of age for NCOs technicians and cadets; no conscription (2012)

Space program

Terrorist groups

Bahrain - Transportation 2017

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National air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 6
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 42
Annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 5,313,756
Annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 240,107,004 mt-km

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: A9C (2016)

Airports: 4 (2013)
Rank: 184
With paved runways total: 4
With paved runways over 3047 m: 3
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1

Heliports: 1 (2013)

Pipelines: gas 20 km; oil 54 km (2013)

Railways

Roadways
Total: 4,122 km
Paved: 3,392 km
Unpaved: 730 km
Rank: 156

Waterways

Merchant marine
Total: 8
By type: bulk carrier 2 container 4 petroleum tanker 2
Foreign owned: 5
Registered in other countries: 5 (2010)
Rank: 120

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Mina' Salman Sitrah

Bahrain - Transnational issues 2017

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Disputes international
Rank: li>a href='../rankorder/rankorderguide.html'>Guide to Country Comparisons: none

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs