Kuwait
State of Kuwait conventional short form: Kuwait local long form: Dawlat al Kuwayt local short form: Al Kuwayt
nominal constitutional monarchyIndependence 19 June 1961 (from UK)
Kuwait as the 2001 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 117 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.
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Introduction
1 fieldBackground
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 to repair oil infrastructure damaged during 1990-91.
Geography
Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iraq and Saudi Arabia
18 fieldsLand use
arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 8% forests and woodland: 0% other: 92% (1993 est.)
Natural hazards
- sudden cloudbursts are common from October to April;
- they bring inordinate amounts of rain which can damage roads and houses;
- sandstorms and dust storms occur throughout the year, but are most common between March and August
Environment - current issues
- limited natural fresh water resources;
- some of world's largest and most sophisticated desalination facilities provide much of the water;
- air and water pollution;
- desertification
Environment - international agreements
party to: Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Endangered Species, Marine Dumping
People
18 fieldsPer 1,000 population(2001 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years: 28.76% (male 299,080; female 288,125) 15-64 years: 68.82% (male 897,839; female 507,527) 65 years and over: 2.42% (male 31,843; female 17,547) (2001 est.)
Population growth rate
3.38% (2001 est.) note: this rate reflects a return to pre-Gulf crisis immigration of expatriates
Sex ratio
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.77 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.81 male(s)/female total population: 1.51 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 76.27 years male: 75.42 years female: 77.15 years (2001 est.)
Literacy
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 78.6% male: 82.2% female: 74.9% (1995 est.)
Government
Nominal constitutional monarchy; Amir 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)
20 fieldsNational Assembly or Majlis al-Umma, 50 seatsone dot, one seat
Country name
conventional long form: State of Kuwait conventional short form: Kuwait local long form: Dawlat al Kuwayt local short form: Al Kuwayt
Administrative divisions
5 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Ahmadi, Al Farwaniyah, Al 'Asimah, Al Jahra', Hawalli
Legal system
civil law system with Islamic law significant in personal matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage
- adult males who have been naturalized for 30 years or more or have resided in Kuwait since before 1920 and their male descendants at age 21 note: only 10% of all citizens are eligible to vote;
- in 1996, naturalized citizens who do not meet the pre-1920 qualification but have been naturalized for 30 years were eligible to vote for the first time
Executive branch
- chief of state:
- Amir 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);
- First Deputy Prime Minister SABAH al-Ahmad al-Jabir Al Sabah (since 17 October 1992);
- Deputy Prime Ministers JABIR MUBARAK al-Hamud Al Sabah (since NA) and MUHAMMAD KHALID al-Hamed Al Sabah (since NA) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister and approved by the monarch elections: none;
- the monarch is hereditary;
- prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the monarch
Legislative branch
- unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Umma (50 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 3 July 1999 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%;
- seats - independents 50;
- note - all cabinet ministers are also ex officio members of the National Assembly
Political pressure groups and leaders
several political groups act as de facto parties: Bedouins, merchants, Sunni and Shi'a activists, and secular leftists and nationalists
International organization participation
ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, BDEAC, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant) chancery: 2940 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-0702
Diplomatic representation from the US
chief of mission: Ambassador James A. LAROCCO embassy: Bayan, near the Bayan palace, Kuwait City mailing address: P. O. Box 77 Safat, 13001 Safat, Kuwait Unit 69000, APO AE 09880-9000 telephone: [965] 539-5307
Flag description
three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a black trapezoid based on the hoist side
Economy
Kuwait is a small, relatively open economy with proved crude oil reserves of about 94 billion barrels - 10% of world reserves.
32 fieldsTrading partnersexports left, imports right
Electricity
Economy - overview
Kuwait is a small, relatively open economy with proved crude oil reserves of about 94 billion barrels - 10% of world reserves. Petroleum accounts for nearly half of GDP, 90% of export revenues, and 75% of government income. Kuwait's climate limits agricultural development. Consequently, with the exception of fish, it depends almost wholly on food imports.
About 75% of potable water must be distilled or imported. Higher oil prices put the FY99/00 budget into a $2 billion surplus. The FY00/01 budget covers only nine months because of a change in the fiscal year. The budget for FY01/02, which begins 1 April, contains higher expenditures for salaries, construction, and other general categories. Kuwait continues its discussions with foreign oil companies to develop fields in the northern part of the country.
Budget
revenues: $11.5 billion expenditures: $17.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY01/02)
Exchange rates
Kuwaiti dinars per US dollar - 0.3057 (January 2001), 0.3067 (2000), 0.3044 (1999), 0.3047 (1998), 0.3033 (1997), 0.2994 (1996)
Communications
10 fieldsTelephone system
- general assessment:
- the quality of service is excellent domestic: new telephone exchanges provide a large capacity for new subscribers;
- trunk traffic is carried by microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, open wire, and fiber-optic cable;
- a cellular telephone system operates throughout Kuwait, and the country is well supplied with pay telephones international: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia;
- linked to Bahrain, Qatar, UAE via the Fiber-Optic Gulf (FOG) cable;
- satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean, 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean), and 2 Arabsat
Transportation
10 fieldsPorts and harbors
Ash Shu'aybah, Ash Shuwaykh, Kuwait, Mina' 'Abd Allah, Mina' al Ahmadi, Mina' Su'ud
Merchant marine
total: 45 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,461,072 GRT/3,966,645 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 6, container 6, liquefied gas 7, livestock carrier 5, petroleum tanker 20 (2000 est.)
Military
Army, Navy, Air Force, National Police Force, National Guard, Coast Guard
7 fieldsTransnational Issues
1 fieldDisputes - international
- in November 1994, Iraq formally accepted the UN-demarcated border with Kuwait which had been spelled out in Security Council Resolutions 687 (1991), 773 (1993), and 883 (1993);
- this formally ends earlier claims to Kuwait and to Bubiyan and Warbah islands
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Kuwait.” The World Factbook 2001. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/kuwait/2001.