Brunei

• close to vital sea lanes through South China Sea linking Indian and Pacific Oceans;
• two parts physically separated by Malaysia;
• the eastern part, the Temburong district, is an exclave and is almost an enclave within Malaysia

noun:

Bruneian(s)

adjective:

Bruneian

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.06 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

0.9 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.98 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.95 male(s)/female

total population:

0.96 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

improved:

total: 100% of population

unimproved:

total: 0% of population (2017 est.)

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution

signed, but not ratified:

none of the selected agreements

particulate matter emissions:

5.78 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions:

7.66 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions:

8.4 megatons (2020 est.)

urban population:

78.6% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization:

1.44% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

municipal:

151.5 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

agricultural:

5.3 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

conventional long form:

Brunei Darussalam

conventional short form:

Brunei

local long form:

Negara Brunei Darussalam

local short form:

Brunei

etymology:

derivation of the name is unclear; according to legend, MUHAMMAD SHAH, who would become the first sultan of Brunei, upon discovering what would become Brunei exclaimed "Baru nah," which roughly translates as "there" or "that's it"

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)

etymology:

• named in 1970 after Sultan Omar Ali SAIFUDDIEN III (1914-1986; "The Father of Independence") who adopted the title of "Seri Begawan" (approximate meaning "honored lord") upon his abdication in 1967;
• "bandar" in Malay means "town" or "city";
• the capital had previously been called Bandar Brunei (Brunei Town)

• 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;
• the Sultan's birthday, 15 June

history:

• drafted 1954 to 1959, signed 29 September 1959;
• note - some constitutional provisions suspended since 1962 under a State of Emergency, others suspended since independence in 1984

amendments:

• proposed by the monarch;
• passage requires submission to the Privy Council for Legislative Council review and finalization takes place by proclamation;
• the monarch can accept or reject changes to the original proposal provided by the Legislative Council;
• amended several times, last in 2010

• mixed legal system based on English common law and Islamic law;
• note - in April 2019, the full sharia penal codes came into force and apply to Muslims and non-Muslims in parallel with present common law codes

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

the father must be a citizen of Brunei

dual citizenship recognized:

no

residency requirement for naturalization:

12 years

chief of state:

Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is both chief of state and head of government

head of government:

Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967)

cabinet:

• Council of Ministers appointed and presided over by the monarch;
• note(s)- 4 additional advisory councils appointed by the monarch are the Religious Council, Privy Council for constitutional issues, Council of Succession, and Legislative Council;
• Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah is also Minister of Finance, Defense, and Foreign Affairs and Trade

elections/appointments:

none; the monarchy is hereditary

highest courts:

• Supreme Court (consists of the Court of Appeal and the High Court, each with a chief justice and 2 judges);
• Sharia Court (consists the Court of Appeals and the High Court);
• note - Brunei has a dual judicial system of secular and sharia (religious) courts;
• the Judicial Committee of Privy Council (in London) serves as the final appellate court for civil cases only

judge selection and term of office:

• Supreme Court judges appointed by the monarch to serve until age 65, and older if approved by the monarch;
• Sharia Court judges appointed by the monarch for life

subordinate courts:

• Intermediate Court;
• Magistrates' Courts;
• Juvenile Court;
• small claims courts;
• lower sharia courts

chief of mission:

Ambassador Dato Paduka Haji S erbini bin Haji A LI (since 28 January 2016)

chancery:

3520 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 237-1838

FAX:

[1] (202) 885-0560

email address and website:

[email protected]; http://www.bruneiembassy.org/index.html

consulate(s):

New York

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Emily M. FLECKNER (since 20 August 2020)

embassy:

Simpang 336-52-16-9, Jalan Duta, Bandar Seri Begawan, BC4115

mailing address:

4020 Bandar Seri Begawan Place, Washington DC 20521-4020

telephone:

(673) 238-7400

FAX:

(673) 238-7533

email address and website:

[email protected]; https://bn.usembassy.gov/

• 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;
• yellow is the color of royalty and symbolizes the sultanate;
• the white and black bands denote Brunei's chief ministers;
• the emblem includes five main components: a swallow-tailed flag, the royal umbrella representing the monarchy, the wings of four feathers symbolizing justice, tranquility, prosperity, and peace, the two upraised hands signifying the government's pledge to preserve and promote the welfare of the people, and the crescent moon denoting Islam, the state religion;
• the state motto "Always render service with God's guidance" appears in yellow Arabic script on the crescent;
• a ribbon below the crescent reads "Brunei, the Abode of Peace"

name:

"Allah Peliharakan Sultan" (God Bless His Majesty)

lyrics/music:

Pengiran Haji Mohamed YUSUF bin Pengiran Abdul Rahim/Awang Haji BESAR bin Sagap

note: adopted 1951

agriculture:

4.2%

industry:

62.8%

services:

33% (2008 est.)

total:

21.4%

male:

19%

female:

25.8% (2019 est.)

lowest 10%:

NA

highest 10%:

NA

• state-controlled Radio Television Brunei (RTB) operates 5 channels;
• 3 Malaysian TV stations are available;
• foreign TV broadcasts are available via satellite systems;
• RTB operates 5 radio networks and broadcasts on multiple frequencies;
• British Forces Broadcast Service (BFBS) provides radio broadcasts on 2 FM stations;
• some radio broadcast stations from Malaysia are available via repeaters

number of registered air carriers:

1 (2020); inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 10

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

1,234,455 (2018)

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

129.35 million mt-km (2018)

total:

2,976 km (2014)

paved:

2,559 km (2014)

unpaved:

417 km (2014)

major seaport(s):

Muara

oil terminal(s):

Lumut, Seria

LNG terminal(s) (export):

Lumut

• the Royal Brunei Armed Forces imports nearly all of its military equipment and weapons systems;
• suppliers since 2010 include France, Germany, Singapore, Sweden, and the US (2021)

• 17 years of age for voluntary military service;
• non-Malays are ineligible to serve;
• recruits from the army, navy, and air force all undergo 43-week initial training (2021)

• Brunei has a long-standing defense relationship with the United Kingdom and hosts a British Army garrison, which includes the Gurkha Battalion and a jungle warfare school;
• Brunei also hosts a Singaporean military training base (2021)

• per Letters of Exchange signed in 2009, Malaysia in 2010 ceded two hydrocarbon concession blocks to Brunei in exchange for Brunei's sultan dropping claims to the Limbang corridor, which divides Brunei;
• nonetheless, Brunei claims a maritime boundary extending as far as a median with Vietnam, thus asserting an implicit claim to Louisa Reef

stateless persons:

• 20,863 (2020);
• note - thousands of stateless persons, often ethnic Chinese, are permanent residents and their families have lived in Brunei for generations;
• obtaining citizenship is difficult and requires individuals to pass rigorous tests on Malay culture, customs, and language;
• stateless residents receive an International Certificate of Identity, which enables them to travel overseas;
• the government is considering changing the law prohibiting non-Bruneians, including stateless permanent residents, from owning land

current situation:

• human traffickers exploit foreign victims in Brunei;
• some men and women who migrate to Brunei to work as domestics or in retail or construction are subject to involuntary servitude, debt-based coercion, contract switching, non-payment of wages, passport confiscation, physical abuse, or confinement;
• some female migrants entering Brunei on tourist visas are forced into prostitution;
• some traffickers use Brunei as a transit point for victims used for sex and labor trafficking in Malaysia and Indonesia

tier rating:

• Tier 2 Watch List — Brunei does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so;
• the government enacted the 2019 Trafficking in Persons Order, which criminalized sex and labor trafficking and separated trafficking crimes from migrant smuggling crimes;
• the government formalized its interagency anti-trafficking in persons committee;
• instituted a committee to review foreign worker recruitment practices, ratified the ASEAN Convention against Trafficking in Persons, and acceded to the UN TIP Protocol;
• however, authorities did not formally identify any trafficking cases, did not initiate any new trafficking prosecutions, and did not convict any traffickers;
• trafficking victims continued to be detained, deported, and charged with crimes without law enforcement determining if they were forced to commit the illegal acts by traffickers;
• the government again did not allocate money to a fund established in 2004 for victim compensation and repatriation;
• a draft national action plan to combat trafficking was not completed for the sixth consecutive year (2020)