Background: The Sultanate of Brunei's influence peaked between the 15th and 17th centuries when its control extended over coastal areas of northwest Borneo and the southern Philippines. Brunei subsequently entered a period of decline brought on by internal strife over royal succession colonial expansion of European powers and piracy. In 1888 Brunei became a British protectorate; independence was achieved in 1984. The same family has ruled Brunei for over six centuries. Brunei benefits from extensive petroleum and natural gas fields the source of one of the highest per capita GDPs in Asia.

Geographic coordinates: 4 30 N 114 40 E

Map reference: Southeast Asia

Area
Total: 5,770 km²
Land: 5,270 km²
Water: 500 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than Delaware

Land boundaries
Total: 381 km
Border countries: (1) Malaysia 381 km

Coastline: 161 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm or to median line

Climate: tropical; hot humid rainy

Terrain: flat coastal plain rises to mountains in east; hilly lowland in west

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
Extremes highest point: Bukit Pagon 1,850 m

Natural resources: petroleum natural gas timber

Land use
Arable land: 2.08%
Permanent crops: 0.87%
Other: 97.05% (2005)

Irrigated land: 10 km² (2003)

Natural hazards: typhoons earthquakes and severe flooding are rare

Geography
Note: close to vital sea lanes through South China Sea linking Indian and Pacific Oceans; two parts physically separated by Malaysia; almost an enclave within Malaysia

Population: 374,577 (July 2007 est.)
Growth rate: 1.81% (2007 est.)
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: Bruneian
Adjective: Bruneian

Ethnic groups: Malay 67% Chinese 15% indigenous 6% other 12%

Languages: Malay (official) English Chinese

Religions: Muslim (official) 67% Buddhist 13% Christian 10% other (includes indigenous beliefs) 10%

Age structure
0-14 years: 27.8% (male 53,512/female 50,529)
15-64 years: 69% (male 130,134/female 128,488)
65 years and over: 3.2% (male 5,688/female 6,226) (2007 est.)

Median age
Total: 27.2 years
Male: 27.3 years
Female: 27.1 years (2007 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.81% (2007 est.)

Birth rate: 18.56 births/1000 population (2007 est.)

Death rate: 3.26 deaths/1000 population (2007 est.)

Net migration rate: 2.79 migrant(s)/1000 population (2007 est.)

Environment
Current issues: seasonal smoke/haze resulting from forest fires in Indonesia
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.059 male/female
15-64 years: 1.013 male/female
65 years and over: 0.914 male/female
Total population: 1.022 male/female (2007 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 13.12 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 15.72 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 10.4 deaths/1000 live births (2007 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 75.3 years
Male: 73.12 years
Female: 77.59 years (2007 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.97 children born/woman (2007 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2003 est.)
People living with hivaids: less than 200 (2003 est.)
Deaths: less than 200 (2003 est.)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 92.7%
Male: 95.2%
Female: 90.2% (2001 census)

Country name
Conventional long form: Brunei Darussalam
Conventional short form: Brunei
Local long form: Negara Brunei Darussalam
Local short form: Brunei

Government type: constitutional sultanate

Capital
Name: Bandar Seri Begawan
Geographic coordinates: 4 53 N, 114 56 E
Time difference: UTC+8 (13 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions: 4 districts (daerah-daerah singular - daerah); Belait Brunei and Muara Temburong Tutong

Independence: 1 January 1984 (from UK)

National holiday: National Day 23 February (1984); note - 1 January 1984 was the date of independence from the UK 23 February 1984 was the date of independence from British protection

Constitution: 29 September 1959 (some provisions suspended under a State of Emergency since December 1962 others since independence on 1 January 1984)

Legal system: based on English common law; for Muslims Islamic Shari'a law supersedes civil law in a number of areas; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: none

Executive branch
Chief of state: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government
Head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967)
Cabinet: Council of Cabinet Ministers appointed and presided over by the monarch; deals with executive matters; note - there is also a Religious Council (members appointed by the monarch) that advises on religious matters, a Privy Council (members appointed by the monarch) that deals with constitutional matters, and the Council of Succession (members appointed by the monarch) that determines the succession to the throne if the need arises
Elections: none; the monarch is hereditary

Legislative branch
Elections: last held in March 1962 (date of next election NA)

Judicial branch: Supreme Court - chief justice and judges are sworn in by monarch for three-year terms; Judicial Committee of Privy Council in London is final court of appeal for civil cases; Shariah courts deal with Islamic laws (2006)

Political parties and leaders
Note: People's Awareness Party or PAKAR [Awang Haji MAIDIN bin Haji Ahmad] was deregistered in 2007; parties are small and have limited activity

International organization participation: APEC APT ARF AsDB ASEAN C EAS G-77 IBRD ICAO ICRM IDB IFRCS IMF IMO IMSO Interpol IOC ISO (correspondent) ITSO ITU NAM OIC OPCW UN UNCTAD UNESCO UPU WCO WHO WIPO WMO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Pengiran Anak Dato PUTEH
In the us chancery: 3,520 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 237-1838
In the us fax: [1] (202) 885-0560
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Emil SKODON
From the us embassy: Third Floor, Teck Guan Plaza, Jalan Sultan, Bandar Seri Begawan, BS8,811
From the us mailing address: PSC 470 (BSB), FPO AP 96,507; P.O. Box 2,991, Bandar Seri Begawan BS8,675, Negara Brunei Darussalam
From the us telephone: [673] 222-0384
From the us fax: [673] 222-5,293

Flag description: yellow with two diagonal bands of white (top almost double width) and black starting from the upper hoist side; the national emblem in red is superimposed at the center; the emblem includes a swallow-tailed flag on top of a winged column within an upturned crescent above a scroll and flanked by two upraised hands

Economy overview: Brunei has a small well-to-do economy that encompasses a mixture of foreign and domestic entrepreneurship government regulation welfare measures and village tradition. Crude oil and natural gas production account for just over half of GDP and more than 90% of exports. Per capita GDP is among the highest in Asia and substantial income from overseas investment supplements income from domestic production. The government provides for all medical services and free education through the university level and subsidizes rice and housing. Brunei's leaders are concerned that steadily increased integration in the world economy will undermine internal social cohesion. Plans for the future include upgrading the labor force reducing unemployment strengthening the banking and tourist sectors and in general further widening the economic base beyond oil and gas.

Real gdp purchasing power parity: $9.557 billion (2006 est.)

Real gdp growth rate: 0.4% (2005 est.)

Real gdp per capita: $25,600 (2005 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 0.9%
Industry: 71.6%
Services: 27.5% (2005 est.)

Agriculture products: rice vegetables fruits; chickens water buffalo cattle goats eggs

Industries: petroleum petroleum refining liquefied natural gas construction

Industrial production growth rate: 1.8% (2005 est.)

Labor force: 180,400 (2006 est.)
By occupation agriculture: 2.9%
By occupation industry: 61.1%
By occupation services: 36% (2003 est.)

Unemployment rate: 4% (2006)

Population below poverty line: NA%

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

Budget
Revenues: $3.765 billion
Expenditures: $4.815 billion (2004 est.)

Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March

Inflation rate consumer prices: 1.1% (2005)

Market value of publicly traded shares: $NA

Exports: $6.247 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Commodities: crude oil natural gas refined products clothing
Partners: Japan 30.5% Indonesia 19.9% South Korea 14.9% Australia 11.5% US 7.7% (2006)

Imports: $1.481 billion c.i.f. (2005 est.)
Commodities: machinery and transport equipment manufactured goods food chemicals
Partners: Singapore 31.6% Malaysia 19% UK 8.1% Japan 5.6% China 5.5% Thailand 4.6% (2006)

Debt external: $0 (2005)

Exchange rates: Bruneian dollars per US dollar - 1.5886 (2006) 1.6644 (2005) 1.6902 (2004) 1.7422 (2003) 1.7906 (2002)

Electricity
Production: 2.735 billion kWh (2005)
Consumption: 2.625 billion kWh (2005 est.)
Exports: 0 kWh (2005)
Imports: 0 kWh (2005)

Natural gas
Production: 11.03 billion m³ (2005 est.)
Consumption: 2.254 billion m³ (2005 est.)
Exports: 8.776 billion m³ (2005 est.)
Imports: 0 m³ (2005)
Proven reserves: 374.8 billion m³ (1 January 2006 est.)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 80,200 (2006)
Mobile cellular: 254,000 (2006)

Telephone system
General assessment: service throughout the country is excellent; international service is good to Southeast Asia, Middle East, Western Europe, and the US
Domestic: every service available
International: country code - 673; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3 optical telecommunications submarine cable that provides links to Asia, the Middle East, and Europe; the Asia-America Gateway submarine cable network, scheduled for completion by late 2008, will provide new links to Asia and the US; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean) (2007)

Internet
Country code: .bn
Hosts: 15,347 (2007)
Users: 165,600 (2006)

Military expenditures
Percent of gdp: 4.5% (2006)

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age (est.) for voluntary military service; non-Malays are ineligible to serve (2007)

Airports: 2 (2007)
With paved runways total: 1
With paved runways over 3047 m: 1 (2007)
With unpaved runways total: 1
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1 (2007)

Heliports: 3 (2007)

Pipelines: gas 672 km; oil 463 km (2006)

Roadways
Total: 3,650 km
Paved: 2,819 km
Unpaved: 831 km (2005)

Waterways: 209 km (navigable by craft drawing less than 1.2 m) (2007)

Merchant marine
Total: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 465,937 GRT/413,393 DWT
By type: liquefied gas 8
Foreign owned: 8 (UK 8) (2007)

Ports and terminals: Lumut Muara Seria

Disputes international: Brunei and Malaysia are still considering international adjudication over their disputed offshore and deepwater seabeds where hydrocarbon exploration was terminated in 2003 international legal adjudication; Malaysia's land boundary with Brunei around Limbang is in dispute; Brunei established an exclusive economic fishing zone encompassing Louisa Reef in the southern Spratly Islands in 1984 but makes no public territorial claim to the offshore reefs; the 2002 'Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea' has eased tensions in the Spratly Islands but falls short of a legally binding 'code of conduct' desired by several of the disputants

Illicit drugs: drug trafficking and illegally importing controlled substances are serious offenses in Brunei and carry a mandatory death penalty