United Arab Emirates

agricultural land:

4.6%;

• arable land 0.5%;
• permanent crops 0.5%;
• permanent pasture 3.6%

forest:

3.8%

other:

91.6% (2011 est.)

• population is heavily concentrated to the northeast on the Musandam Peninsula;
• the three largest emirates - Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah - are home to nearly 85% of the population

• lack of natural freshwater resources compensated by desalination plants;
• desertification;
• beach pollution from oil spills

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection

signed, but not ratified:

Law of the Sea

noun:

Emirati(s)

adjective:

Emirati

• population is heavily concentrated to the northeast on the Musandam Peninsula;
• the three largest emirates - Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah - are home to nearly 85% of the population

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.47 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

3.2 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

2.93 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

1.69 male(s)/female

total population:

2.18 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

conventional long form:

United Arab Emirates

conventional short form:

none

local long form:

Al Imarat al Arabiyah al Muttahidah

local short form:

none

former:

Trucial Oman, Trucial States

abbreviation:

UAE

etymology:

• self-descriptive country name;
• the name "Arabia" can be traced back many centuries B.C., the ancient Egyptians referred to the region as "Ar Rabi";
• "emirates" derives from "amir" the Arabic word for "commander," "lord," or "prince"

name:

Abu Dhabi

geographic coordinates:

24 28 N, 54 22 E

time difference:

UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

history:

previous 1971 (provisional); latest drafted in 1979, became permanent May 1996

amendments:

• proposed by the Supreme Council and submitted to the Federal National Council;
• passage requires at least a two-thirds majority vote of Federal National Council members present, and approval by the Supreme Council president;
• amended 2009 (2016)

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

the father must be a citizen of the United Arab Emirates; if the father is unknown, the mother must be a citizen

dual citizenship recognized:

no

residency requirement for naturalization:

30 years

description:

unicameral Federal National Council (FNC) or Majlis al-Ittihad al-Watani (40 seats; 20 members indirectly elected by an electoral college whose members are selected by each emirate ruler proportional to its FNC membership, and 20 members appointed by the rulers of the 7 constituent states; members serve 4-year terms)

elections:

• last held on 3 October 2015 (next to be held in 2019);
• note - the electoral college was expanded from 129,274 electors in the December 2011 election to 224,279 in the October 2015 election;
• 347 candidates including 78 women ran for 20 contested seats in the 40-member FNC

election results:

• 19 men and 1 woman were elected;
• seats by emirate - Abu Dhabi 4, Dubai 4, Sharjah 3, Ras al-Khaimah 3, Ajman 2, Fujairah 2, Umm al-Quwain 2;
• note - only 1 woman (from Ras Al Khaimah) won an FNC seat

highest court(s):

Federal Supreme Court (consists of the court president and 4 judges; jurisdiction limited to federal cases)

judge selection and term of office:

• judges appointed by the federal president following approval by the Federal Supreme Council, the highest executive and legislative authority consisting of the 7 emirate rulers;
• judges serve until retirement age or the expiry of their appointment terms

subordinate courts:

Federal Court of Cassation (determines the constitutionality of laws promulgated at the federal and emirate level; federal level courts of first instance and appeals courts; the emirates of Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Ra's al Khaymah have parallel court systems; the other 4 emirates have incorporated their courts into the federal system; note - the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) Courts and the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC) Courts both adjudicate civil and commercial disputes.

chief of mission:

Ambassador Yusif bin Mani bin Said al-UTAYBA (since 28 July 2008)

chancery:

3522 International Court NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 243-2400

FAX:

[1] (202) 243-2432

consulate(s) general:

Boston, Los Angeles, New York

chief of mission:

Ambassador Barbara A. LEAF (since 17 November 2014)

embassy:

Embassies District, Plot 38 Sector W59-02, Street No. 4, Abu Dhabi

mailing address:

P. O. Box 4009, Abu Dhabi

telephone:

[971] (2) 414-2200

FAX:

[971] (2) 414-2603

consulate(s) general:

Dubai

• three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and black with a wider vertical red band on the hoist side;
• the flag incorporates all four Pan-Arab colors, which in this case represent fertility (green), neutrality (white), petroleum resources (black), and unity (red);
• red was the traditional color incorporated into all flags of the emirates before their unification

name:

"Nashid al-watani al-imarati" (National Anthem of the UAE)

lyrics/music:

AREF Al Sheikh Abdullah Al Hassan/Mohamad Abdel WAHAB

note: music adopted 1971, lyrics adopted 1996; Mohamad Abdel WAHAB also composed the music for the anthem of Tunisia

• dates, vegetables, watermelons;
• poultry, eggs, dairy products;
• fish

agriculture:

7%

industry:

15%

services:

78% (2000 est.)

lowest 10%:

NA%

highest 10%:

NA%

general assessment:

• modern fiber-optic integrated services;
• digital network with rapidly growing use of mobile-cellular telephones;
• key centers are Abu Dhabi and Dubai

domestic:

microwave radio relay, fiber-optic and coaxial cable

international:

• country code - 971;
• linked to the international submarine cable FLAG (Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe);
• landing point for both the SEA-ME-WE-3 and SEA-ME-WE-4 submarine cable networks;
• satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian (2016)

• except for the many organizations now operating in media free zones in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, most TV and radio stations remain government-owned;
• widespread use of satellite dishes provides access to pan-Arab and other international broadcasts (2017)

number of registered air carriers:

12; inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 498

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

84,738,479

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

16.647 billion mt-km (2015)

• condensate 533 km;
• gas 3,277 km;
• liquid petroleum gas 300 km;
• oil 3,287 km;
• oil/gas/water 24 km;
• refined products 218 km;
• water 99 km (2013)

total:

4,080 km

paved:

4,080 km (includes 253 km of expressways) (2008)

country comparison to the world: 157

total:

618

by type:

general cargo 97, oil tanker 26, other 495 (2017)

country comparison to the world: 34

major seaport(s):

Al Fujayrah, Mina' Jabal 'Ali (Dubai), Khor Fakkan (Khawr Fakkan) (Sharjah), Mubarraz Island (Abu Dhabi), Mina' Rashid (Dubai), Mina' Saqr (Ra's al Khaymah)

container port(s) (TEUs):

Dubai Port (15,585,000), Khor Fakkan (Khawr Fakkan) (Sharjah) (4,414,000) (2015)

LNG terminal(s) (export):

Das Island

• 18-30 years of age for compulsory military service for men, optional service for women;
• 17 years of age for male volunteers with parental approval;
• 2-year general obligation, 9 months for secondary school graduates;
• women may train for 9 months regardless of education (2014)

• boundary agreement was signed and ratified with Oman in 2003 for entire border, including Oman's Musandam Peninsula and Al Madhah enclaves, but contents of the agreement and detailed maps showing the alignment have not been published;
• Iran and UAE dispute Tunb Islands and Abu Musa Island, which Iran occupies

• the UAE is a drug transshipment point for traffickers given its proximity to Southwest Asian drug-producing countries;
• the UAE's position as a major financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering;
• anti-money-laundering controls improving, but informal banking remains unregulated