Map of Qatar | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: Ruled by the Al Thani family since the mid-1800s Qatar within the last 60 years transformed itself from a poor British protectorate noted mainly for pearling into an independent state with significant oil and natural gas revenues. The continuous siphoning off of petroleum revenue through the mid-1990s by Qatari amirs permanently residing in Europe had stunted Qatar’s economic growth. Former amir HAMAD bin Khalifa Al Thani who overthrew his father in a bloodless coup in 1995 ushered in wide-sweeping political and media reforms unprecedented economic investment and a growing Qatari regional leadership role in part through the creation of the pan-Arab satellite news network Al-Jazeera and Qatar's mediation of some regional conflicts. In the 2000s Qatar resolved its longstanding border disputes with both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia and by 2007 had attained the highest per capita income in the world. Qatar did not experience domestic unrest or violence like that seen in other Near Eastern and North African countries in 2010-11 due in part to its immense wealth. Since the outbreak of regional unrest however Doha has prided itself on its support for many of these popular revolutions particularly in Libya and Syria although to the detriment of Qatar’s relations with Bahrain Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which temporarily recalled their respective ambassadors from Qatar. In mid-2013 HAMAD transferred power to his 33 year-old son the current Amir TAMIM bin Hamad - a peaceful abdication rare in the history of Arab Gulf states. TAMIM oversaw a warming of Qatar’s relations with Bahrain Saudi Arabia and the UAE by later in 2014 and prioritized improving the domestic welfare of Qataris including establishing advanced healthcare and education systems and expanding the country's infrastructure in anticipation of Doha's hosting of the 2022 World Cup.


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Location: Middle East peninsula bordering the Persian Gulf and Saudi Arabia

Geographic coordinates: 25 30 N 51 15 E

Map reference: Middle East

Area
Total: 11,586 km²
Land: 11,586 km²
Water: 0 km²
Rank: 165
Comparative: almost twice the size of Delaware; slightly smaller than Connecticut

Land boundaries
Total: 87 km
Border countries: (1) Saudi Arabia 87 km

Coastline: 563 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone: as determined by bilateral agreements or the median line

Climate: arid; mild pleasant winters; very hot humid summers

Terrain: mostly flat and barren desert

Elevation
Mean elevation: 28 m
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m: highest point: Tuwayyir al Hamir 103 m

Natural resources: petroleum natural gas fish

Land use
Agricultural land: 5.6%
Forest: 0%
Other: 94.4%

Irrigated land: 130 km² (2012)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: haze dust storms sandstorms common

Geography
Note: the peninsula occupies a strategic location in the central Persian Gulf near major petroleum deposits


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Population
Distribution: most of the population is clustered in or around the capital of Doha on the eastern side of the peninsula: 2,314,307 (July 2017 est.)
Rank: 143
Growth rate: 2.27% (2017 est.)
Growth rate rank: 32
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: Qatari
Adjective: Qatari

Ethnic groups: non-Qatari 88.4% Qatari 11.6% (2015 est.)

Languages: Arabic (official) English commonly used as a second language

Religions: Muslim 67.7% Christian 13.8% Hindu 13.8% Buddhist 3.1% folk religion .1% Jewish .1% other 0.7% unaffiliated 0.9% (2010 est.)

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 12.63%
15-24 years: 12.35%
25-54 years: 70.59%
55-64 years: 3.42%
65 years and over: 1% (2017 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 17.5
Youth dependency ratio: 16.3
Elderly dependency ratio: 1.3
Potential support ratio: 78.1

Median age
Total: 33.2 years
Male: 34.3 years
Female: 28.1 years
Rank: 90

Population growth rate: 2.27% (2017 est.)
Rank: 32

Birth rate: 9.6 births/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 199

Death rate: 1.5 deaths/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 226

Net migration rate: 14.6 migrant(s)/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 4

Population distribution: most of the population is clustered in or around the capital of Doha on the eastern side of the peninsula

Urbanization
Urban population: 99.4% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 1.63% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: DOHA (capital) 718,000 (2015)

Environment
Current issues: limited natural freshwater resources are increasing dependence on large-scale desalination facilities
International agreements party to: Biodiversity Climate Change Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Desertification Endangered Species Hazardous Wastes Law of the Sea Ozone Layer Protection Ship Pollution
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.02 male/female
0-14 years: 1.03 male/female
15-24 years: 2.64 male/female
25-54 years: 4.91 male/female
55-64 years: 3.38 male/female
65 years and over: 1.71 male/female
Total population: 3.41 male/female

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 6.2 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 6.4 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 5.9 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 167

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 78.9 years
Male: 76.8 years
Female: 81 years
Rank: 52

Total fertility rate: 1.9 children born/woman (2017 est.)
Rank: 133

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 37.5% (2012)

Drinking water source:

Current health expenditure

Physicians density: 1.96 physicians/1000 population (2014)

Hospital bed density: 1.2 beds/1000 population (2012)

Sanitation facility access:

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: .1% (2016 est.)
People living with hivaids: 100 (2016 est.)
Deaths: 100 (2016 est.)

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 35.1% (2016)
Rank: 15

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures: 3.5% of GDP (2014)
Rank: 154

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 97.3%
Male: 97.4%
Female: 96.8%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 13 years
Male: 13 years
Female: 14 years

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: State of Qatar
Conventional short form: Qatar
Local long form: Dawlat Qatar
Local short form: Qatar
Note: closest approximation of the native pronunciation is gattar or cottar
Etymology: the origin of the name is uncertain but it dates back at least 2000 years since a term 'Catharrei' was used to describe the inhabitants of the peninsula by Pliny the Elder and a 'Catara' peninsula is depicted on a map by Ptolemy (2nd century A.D.)

Government type: absolute monarchy

Capital
Name: Doha
Geographic coordinates: 25 17 N 51 32 E
Time difference: UTC+3

Administrative divisions: 8 municipalities (baladiyat singular - baladiyah); Ad Dawhah Al Khawr wa adh Dhakhirah Al Wakrah Ar Rayyan Ash Shamal Ash Shihaniyah Az Za'ayin Umm Salal

Dependent areas

Independence: 3 September 1971 (from the UK)

National holiday: National Day 18 December (1878) anniversary of Al Thani family accession to the throne; Independence Day 3 September (1971)

Constitution
History: previous 1972 ; latest drafted 2 July 2002 approved by referendum 29 April 2003 endorsed 8 June 2004 effective 9 June 2005
Amendments: proposed by the emir or by one-third of Advisory Council members; passage requires two-thirds majority vote of Advisory Council members and approval and promulgation by the emir; articles pertaining to the rule of state and its inheritance functions of the emir and citizen rights and liberties cannot be amended

Legal system: mixed legal system of civil law and Islamic law (in family and personal matters)

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 Qatar
Dual citizenship recognized: no
Residency requirement for naturalization: 20 years; 15 years if an Arab national

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: Amir TAMIM bin Hamad Al Thani
Head of government: Prime Minister ABDALLAH bin Nasir bin Khalifa Al Thani ; Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad bin Abdallah al-MAHMUD (since 20 September 2011)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the amir
Electionsappointments: the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the amir

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral Advisory Council or Majlis al-Shura
Note: the 2003 constitution calls for a 45-member council with 30 members directly elected by popular vote for 4-year re-electable terms and 15 appointed by the monarch to serve until resignation or until relieved; election for the new Council was initially scheduled for 2007 but has been extended several times the latest to June 2019

Judicial branch
Highest court: Supreme Court or Court of Cassation ; Supreme Constitutional Court (consists of the chief justice and 6 members)
Judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges nominated by the Supreme Judiciary Council a 9-member independent body consisting of judiciary heads appointed by the Amir; judges appointed for 3-year renewable terms; Supreme Constitutional Court members nominated by the Supreme Judiciary Council and appointed by the monarch; term of appointment NA
Subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal; Administrative Court; courts of first instance; sharia courts; Courts of Justice; Qatar International Court and Dispute Resolution Center established in 2009 provides dispute resolution services for institutions and bodies in Qatar as well as internationally

Political parties and leaders: political parties are banned

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

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador MISHAL bin Hamad bin Muhammad Al Thani
In the us chancery: 2,555 M Street NW Washington DC 20,037
In the us telephone: [1] 274-1600
In the us FAX: [1] 237-0682
In the us consulate general: Houston Los Angeles
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador ; Charge d'Affaires William GRANT (since 23 July 2017)
From the us embassy: 22 February Street Al Luqta District Doha
From the us mailing address: P. O. Box 2,399 Doha
From the us telephone: [974] 4,496-6,000
From the us FAX: [974] 4,488-4,298

Flag description: maroon with a broad white serrated band (nine white points) on the hoist side; maroon represents the blood shed in Qatari wars white stands for peace; the nine-pointed serrated edge signifies Qatar as the ninth member of the 'reconciled emirates' in the wake of the Qatari-British treaty of 1916
Note: the other eight emirates are the seven that compose the UAE and Bahrain; according to some sources the dominant color was formerly red but this darkened to maroon upon exposure to the sun and the new shade was eventually adopted

National symbols: a maroon field surmounted by a white serrated band with nine white points; national colors: maroon white

National anthem
Name: 'Al-Salam Al-Amiri'
Lyrics and music: Sheikh MUBARAK bin Saif al-Thani/Abdul Aziz Nasser OBAIDAN
Note: adopted 1996; anthem first performed that year at a meeting of the Gulf Cooperative Council hosted by Qatar

National heritage


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Economy overview:

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Note: data are in 2016 dollars
Rank: 52

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 108

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2016 dollars
Rank: 2

Gross national saving:
Rank: 3

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 25.8%
Government consumption: 23.1%
Investment in fixed capital: 43.6%
Investment in inventories: 1.6%
Exports of goods and services: 47.5%
Imports of goods and services: -41.6%

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 0.2%
Industry: 54.6%
Services: 52%

Agriculture products: fruits vegetables; poultry dairy products beef; fish

Industries: liquefied natural gas crude oil production and refining ammonia fertilizer petrochemicals steel reinforcing bars cement commercial ship repair

Industrial production growth rate: 0.6% (2016 est.)
Rank: 149

Labor force: 1.896 million (2016 est.)
Rank: 126

Unemployment rate:
Rank: 3

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: NA%

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 1.3%
Highest 10: 35.9%

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $39.67 billion
Expenditures: $52.67 billion
Surplus or deficit: -8.3% of GDP (2016 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 193

Taxes and other revenues: 25.3% of GDP (2016 est.)
Rank: 116

Public debt:
Rank: 85

Revenue

Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March

Inflation rate consumer prices:
Rank: 136

Central bank discount rate:
Rank: 82

Commercial bank prime lending rate:
Rank: 149

Stock of narrow money:
Rank: 58

Stock of broad money:
Rank: 50

Stock of domestic credit:
Rank: 43

Market value of publicly traded shares:
Rank: 37

Current account balance:
Rank: 180

Exports:
Rank: 46
Commodities: liquefied natural gas (LNG) petroleum products fertilizers steel
Partners: Japan 20% South Korea 15.5% India 13.1% China 8.2% UAE 5.5% Singapore 5.3% (2016)

Imports:
Rank: 60
Commodities: machinery and transport equipment food chemicals
Partners: US 13.7% Germany 9.8% UAE 9.2% China 8.6% Japan 7.2% UK 5.5% Saudi Arabia 4.6% Italy 4.4% (2016)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Rank: 48

Debt external:
Rank: 41

Stock of direct foreign investment at home:
Rank: 64

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad:
Rank: 41

Exchange rates:


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Electricity
Access population without electricity: 45,165
Access electrification total population: 98%
Access electrification urban areas: 98%
Access electrification rural areas: 93%
Production: 39.01 billion kWh (2015 est.)
Production rank: 59
Consumption: 36.53 billion kWh (2015 est.)
Consumption rank: 59
Exports: 0 kWh (2016 est.)
Exports rank: 186
Imports: 0 kWh (2016 est.)
Imports rank: 190
Installed generating capacity: 8.836 million kW (2015 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 67
Generation sources fossil fuels: 99.5% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 30
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 169
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 0% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 197
Generation sources other renewable sources: 0.5% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 151

Coal

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 1.523 million bbl/day (2016 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 17
Crude oil exports: 1.255 million bbl/day (2014 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 14
Crude oil imports: 0 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 179
Crude oil proven reserves: 25.24 billion bbl (1 January 2017 es)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 14

Crude oil

Refined petroleum
Products production: 278,300 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Products production rank: 44
Products consumption: 280,000 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products consumption rank: 46
Products exports: 544,000 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Products exports rank: 15
Products imports: 245.3 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Products imports rank: 210

Natural gas
Production: 164 billion m³ (2015 est.)
Production rank: 4
Consumption: 49.64 billion m³ (2015 est.)
Consumption rank: 22
Exports: 123.9 billion m³ (2015 est.)
Exports rank: 2
Imports: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Imports rank: 178
Proven reserves: 24.3 trillion m³ (1 January 2017 es)
Proven reserves rank: 3

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 92 million Mt (2013 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 42

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 467,148
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 21
Fixed lines rank: 101
Mobile cellular total: 3,552,579
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 157
Mobile cellular rank: 134

Telephone system
General assessment: modern system centered in Doha
Domestic: combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular telephone subscribership exceeds 175 telephones per 100 persons
International: country code - 974; landing point for the Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe submarine cable network that provides links to Asia Middle East Europe and the US; tropospheric scatter to Bahrain; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia and the UAE; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat (2016)

Broadcast media: TV and radio broadcast licensing and access to local media markets are state controlled; home of the satellite TV channel Al-Jazeera which was originally owned and financed by the Qatari government but has evolved to independent corporate status; Al-Jazeera claims editorial independence in broadcasting; local radio transmissions include state private and international broadcasters on FM frequencies in Doha; in August 2013 Qatar's satellite company Es'hailSat launched its first communications satellite Es'hail 1 (manufactured in the US) which entered commercial service in December 2013 to provide improved television broadcasting capability and expand availability of voice and Internet; Es'hailSat expects to launch its second satellite in 2018 (2014)

Internet
Country code: .qa
Users total: 2,129,360
Users percent of population: 94.3%
Users rank: 95

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation: conscription for males aged 18-35; 4-month general obligation 3 months for graduates (2014)

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 2
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 199
Annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 25,263,224
Annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 7,563,307,390 mt-km

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: A7 (2016)

Airports: 6 (2013)
Rank: 178
With paved runways total: 4
With paved runways over 3047 m: 3
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 1
With unpaved runways total: 2
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 1

Heliports: 1 (2013)

Pipelines: condensate 288 km; condensate/gas 221 km; gas 2,383 km; liquid petroleum gas 90 km; oil 745 km; refined products 103 km (2013)

Railways

Roadways
Total: 9,830 km
Rank: 136

Waterways

Merchant marine
Total: 28
By type: bulk carrier 3 chemical tanker 2 container 13 liquefied gas 6 petroleum tanker 4
Foreign owned: 6
Registered in other countries: 35 (2010)
Rank: 88

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Doha Mesaieed Ra's Laffan
LNG terminal: Ras Laffan


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Disputes international: none

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Stateless persons: 1200

Illicit drugs
Rank: li>a href='../rankorder/rankorderguide.html'>Guide to Country Comparisons