Yemen

republic

Yemen as the 1992 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 75 fields, one of 35 editions from 1991 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalSanaa

Area527,970 km2

Populationas each edition published it

10.39 million July 1992 · 10.06m in 1991

Population growth% a year

Not in this edition 3.31% in 1993

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 16.4 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

Not in this edition 50.94 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

7.3 children per woman 1992 · 7.4 in 1991

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

118 deaths per 1,000 live births 1992 · 121 in 1991

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

Not in this edition $775 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

Not in this edition 3.1% in 1994

Geography

13 fields

Total area

527,970km2

Comparative area: slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming

Coastline

1,906km

Contiguous zone: North - 18 nm; South - 24 nmContinental shelf: North - 200 meters (depth); South - edge of continental margin or 200 nmExclusive economic zone: 200 nmTerritorial sea: 12 nm

Land boundaries

1,746km total

Oman 288 km, Saudi Arabia 1,458 km

Land area

527,970 km2; includes Perim, Socotra, the former Yemen Arab Republic (YAR or North Yemen), and the former People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY or South Yemen)

Disputes

undefined section of boundary with Saudi Arabia;
Administrative Line with Oman;
there is a proposed treaty with Oman (which has not yet been formerly accepted) to settle the Yemeni-Omani boundary

Climate

mostly desert;
hot and humid along west coast;
temperate in western mountains affected by seasonal monsoon;
extraordinarily hot, dry, harsh desert in east

Terrain

narrow coastal plain backed by flat-topped hills and rugged mountains;
dissected upland desert plains in center slope into the desert interior of the Arabian Peninsula

Natural resources

crude oil, fish, rock salt, marble;
small deposits of coal, gold, lead, nickel, and copper;
fertile soil in west

Land use

arable land 6%;
permanent crops NEGL%;
meadows and pastures 30%;
forest and woodland 7%;
other 57%;
includes irrigated NEGL%

Environment

subject to sand and dust storms in summer;
scarcity of natural freshwater resources;
overgrazing;
soil erosion;
desertification

Note

controls Bab el Mandeb, the strait linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, one of world's most active shipping lanes

People

14 fields

Population

10,394,749

(July 1992), growth rate 3.3% (1992)

Per 1,000 population(1992)

Birth

51Death

16Net migration

-3

Literacy

38%

(male 53%, female 26%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Ethnic divisions

North - Arab 90%, Afro-Arab (mixed) 10%;
South - almost all Arabs;
a few Indians, Somalis, and Europeans

Religions

North - Muslim almost 100% (45% Sunni and 55% Zaydi Shi`a);
NEGL Jewish;
South - Sunni Muslim, some Christian and Hindu

Labor force

North - NA number of workers with agriculture and herding 70%, and expatriate laborers 30% (est.);
South - 477,000 with agriculture 45.2%, services 21.2%, construction 13.4%, industry 10.6%, commerce and other 9.6% (1983)

Organized labor

North - NA; South - 348,200 and the General Confederation of Workers of the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen had 35,000 members

Government

Republic

20 fields

Administrative divisions

17 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah);
Abyan, `Adan, Al Bayda', Al Hudaydah, Al Jawf, Al Mahrah, Al Mahwit, Dhamar, Hadramawt, Hajjah, Ibb, Lahij, Ma'rib, Sa`dah, San`a', Shabwah, Ta`izz

Independence

Republic of Yemen was established on 22 May 1990 with the merger of the Yemen Arab Republic {Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen} and the Marxist-dominated People's Democratic Republic of Yemen {Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen};
previously North Yemen had become independent on NA November 1918 (from the Ottoman Empire) and South Yemen had become independent on 30 November 1967 (from the UK);
the union is to be solidified during a 30-month transition period, which coincides with the remainder of the five-year terms of both legislatures

Legal system

based on Islamic law, Turkish law, English common law, and local customary law; does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

National holiday

Proclamation of the Republic, 22 May (1990)

Executive branch

five-member Presidential Council (president, vice president, two members from northern Yemen and one member from southern Yemen), prime minister

Judicial branch

North - State Security Court; South - Federal High Court

Leaders

Chief of State and Head of Government:: President `Ali `Abdallah SALIH (since 22 May 1990, the former president of North Yemen);
Vice President Ali Salim al-BIDH (since 22 May 1990, and Secretary General of the Yemeni Socialist Party);
Presidential Council Member Salim Salih MUHAMMED;
Presidential Council Member Kadi Abdul-Karim al-ARASHI;
Presidential Council Member Abdul-Aziz ABDUL-GHANI;
Prime Minister Haydar Abu Bakr al-`ATTAS (since 22 May 1990, former president of South Yemen)

Political parties and leaders

General People's Congress, `Ali `Abdallah SALIH;
Yemeni Socialist Party (YSP; formerly South Yemen's ruling party - a coalition of National Front, Ba`th, and Communist Parties), Ali Salim al-BIDH;
Yemen Grouping for Reform or Islaah, Abdallah Husayn AHMAR

Elections

House of Representatives:: last held NA (next to be held NA November 1992);
results - percent of vote NA;
seats - (301);
number of seats by party NA;
note - the 301 members of the new House of Representatives come from North Yemen's Consultative Assembly (159 members), South Yemen's Supreme People's Council (111 members), and appointments by the New Presidential Council (31 members)

Communists

small number in North, greater but unknown number in South

Other political or pressure groups

conservative tribal groups, Muslim Brotherhood, leftist factions - pro-Iraqi Ba`thists, Nasirists, National Democratic Front (NDF)

Member of

ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation

Ambassador Muhsin Ahmad al-AYNI;
Chancery at Suite 840, 600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037;
telephone (202) 965-4760 or 4761;
there is a Yemeni Consulate General in Detroit and a Consulate in San Francisco

US:: Ambassador Arthur H. HUGHES;
Embassy at Dhahr Himyar Zone, Sheraton Hotel District, Sanaa (mailing address is P. O. Box 22347 Sanaa, Republic of Yemen or Sanaa - Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-6330);
telephone [967] (2) 238-842 through 238-852;
FAX [967] (2) 251-563

Flag

three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black;
similar to the flag of Syria which has two green stars and of Iraq which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band;
also similar to the flag of Egypt which has a symbolic eagle centered in the white band

Economy

Whereas the northern city Sanaa is the political capital of a united Yemen, | the southern city Aden, with its refinery and port facilities, is the | economic and commercial capital.

18 fields

External debt

$5.75billion

(December 1989 est.)

Whereas the northern city Sanaa is the political capital of a united Yemen, the southern city Aden, with its refinery and port facilities, is the economic and commercial capital. Future economic development depends heavily on Western-assisted development of promising oil resources. South Yemen's willingness to merge stemmed partly from the steady decline in Soviet economic support.

Overview

North:: The low level of domestic industry and agriculture have made northern Yemen dependent on imports for virtually all of its essential needs. Large trade deficits have been made up for by remittances from Yemenis working abroad and foreign aid. Once self-sufficient in food production, northern Yemen has become a major importer. Land once used for export crops - cotton, fruit, and vegetables - has been turned over to growing qat, a mildly narcotic shrub chewed by Yemenis which has no significant export market. Oil export revenues started flowing in late 1987 and boosted 1988 earnings by about $800 million.
South:: This has been one of the poorest Arab countries, with a per capita GNP of about $500. A shortage of natural resources, a widely dispersed population, and an arid climate have made economic development difficult. The economy has grown at an average annual rate of only 2-3% since the mid-1970s. The economy had been organized along socialist lines, dominated by the public sector. Economic growth has been constrained by a lack of incentives, partly stemming from centralized control over production decisions, investment allocation, and import choices.

GDP

exchange rate conversion - $5.3 billion, per capita $545; real growth rate NA% (1990 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

North:: 16.9% (1988)
South:: 0% (1989)

Unemployment rate

North:: 13% (1986)
South:: NA%

Budget

North:: revenues $1.4 billion; expenditures $2.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $590 million (1988 est.)
South:: revenues and grants $435 million; expenditures $1.0 billion, including capital expenditure of $460 million (1988 est.)

Exports

North:: $606 million (f.o.b., 1989)
commodities:: crude oil, cotton, coffee, hides, vegetables
partners:: FRG 29%, US 26%, Netherlands 12%
South:: $113.8 million (f.o.b., 1989 est.)
commodities:: cotton, hides, skins, dried and salted fish
partners:: Japan, North Yemen, Italy

Imports

North: $1.3 billion (f.o.b., 1988)

Imports

commodities:: textiles and other manufactured consumer goods, petroleum products, sugar, grain, flour, other foodstuffs, and cement
partners:: Saudi Arabia 12%, France 6%, US 5%, Australia 5% (1985)
South:: $553.9 million (f.o.b., 1989 est.)
commodities:: grain, consumer goods, crude oil, machinery, chemicals
partners:: USSR, UK, Ethiopia

Industrial production

North:: growth rate 2% in manufacturing (1988)
South:: growth rate NA% in manufacturing

Electricity

700,000 kW capacity; 1,200 million kWh produced, 120 kWh per capita (1991)

Industries

crude oil production and petroleum refining;
small-scale production of cotton textiles and leather goods;
food processing;
handicrafts;
fishing;
small aluminum products factory;
cement

Agriculture

North:: accounted for 26% of GDP and 70% of labor force;
farm products - grain, fruits, vegetables, qat (mildly narcotic shrub), coffee, cotton, dairy, poultry, meat, goat meat;
not self-sufficient in grain
South:: accounted for 17% of GNP and 45% of labor force;
products - grain, qat (mildly narcotic shrub), coffee, fish, livestock;
fish and honey major exports;
most food imported

Economic aid

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $389 million;
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $2.0 billion;
OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $3.2 billion;
Communist countries (1970-89), $2.4 billion

Currency

North Yemeni riyal (plural - riyals);
1 North Yemeni riyal (YR) = 100 fils;
South Yemeni dinar (plural - dinars);
1 South Yemeni dinar (YD) = 1,000 fils

Exchange rates

North Yemeni riyals (YR) per US$1 - 12,1000 (June 1992), 12.0000 (1991), 9.7600 (1990), 9.7600 (January 1989), 9.7717 (1988), 10.3417 (1987);
South Yemeni dinars (YD) per US$1 - 0.3454 (fixed rate)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

7 fields

Merchant marine, 3 ships by typeone square, one ship

cargo 2petroleum tanker 13 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,309 GRT/6,568 DWT

Airports, 46 total, 40 usable

permanent-surface runways

10runways | over 3,659 m

nonerunways 2,440-3,659 m

20runways 1,220-2,439 m

since unification in 1990, efforts are being made to create a national domestic civil telecommunications network and to revitalize the infrastructure of a united Yemen;
the network consists of microwave, cable and troposcatter;
65,000 telephones (est.);
broadcast stations - 4 AM, 1 FM, 10 TV;
satellite earth stations - 2 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Intersputnik, 2 ARABSAT;
microwave to Saudi Arabia, and Djibouti