Yemen

Republic of YemenAl Jumhuriyah al Yamaniyah

republic

Yemen as the 2000 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 107 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

Position15 00 N, 48 00 E

Area527,970 sq km

LocationMiddle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Red Sea, between Oman and Saudi Arabia

Populationas each edition published it

17.48 million July 2000 est. · 10.06m in 1991

Population growth% a year

3.36% 2000 est. · 3.31% in 1993

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 16.4 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

59.83 years 2000 est. · 50.94 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

7.05 children per woman 2000 est. · 7.4 in 1991

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

70.28 deaths per 1,000 live births 2000 est. · 121 in 1991

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$750 1999 est. · $775 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

4% 1999 est. · 3.1% in 1994

Introduction

1 field

Background

North Yemen became independent of the Ottoman Empire in 1918. The British, who had set up a protectorate area around the southern port of Aden in the 19th century, withdrew in 1967 from what became South Yemen. Three years later, the southern government adopted a Marxist orientation. The massive exodus of hundreds of thousands of Yemenis from the south to the north contributed to two decades of hostility between the states. The two countries were formally unified as the Republic of Yemen in 1990. A southern secessionist movement in 1994 was quickly subdued.

Geography

Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Red Sea, between Oman and Saudi Arabia

18 fields

Land useshare of 527,970 sq km

arable land 3%permanent crops 0%permanent pastures 30%forests and woodland 4%other 63% (1993 est.)irrigated 3,600 sq km (1993 est.)

Area

527,970sq km

land: 527,970 sq kmwater: 0 sq kmnote: 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)slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming

Coastline

1,906km

contiguous zone: 18 nm in the North; 24 nm in the Southcontinental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental marginexclusive economic zone: 200 nmterritorial sea: 12 nm

Highest point

3,760m

Jabal an Nabi Shu'ayblowest point: Arabian Sea 0 m

Land boundaries

1,746km

border countries: Oman 288 km, Saudi Arabia 1,458 km

Location

Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Red Sea, between Oman and Saudi Arabia

Geographic coordinates

15 00 N, 48 00 E

Map references

Middle East

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

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

Natural hazards

sandstorms and dust storms in summer

Environment - current issues

very limited natural fresh water resources;
inadequate supplies of potable water;
overgrazing;
soil erosion;
desertification

Environment - international agreements

party to:: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified:: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note

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

People

15 fields

Population

17,479,206

(July 2000 est.)growth rate: 3.36% (2000 est.)

Per 1,000 population(2000 est.)

Birth

43.44Death

9.86Net migration

Male · female

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years (2000 est.)59.83

58.1 · 61.64

TotalMale · femaleLiteracy (1990 est.)38%

53% · 26%

MaleFemaleLiteracy definition: age 15 and over can read and write

Age structure

0-14 years:: 47% (male 4,220,621; female 4,076,902)
15-64 years:: 49% (male 4,416,139; female 4,224,474)
65 years and over:: 4% (male 275,590; female 265,480) (2000 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth:: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years:: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years:: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over:: 1.04 male(s)/female
total population:: 1.04 male(s)/female (2000 est.)

Infant mortality rate

70.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)

Total fertility rate

7.05 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Nationality

noun:: Yemeni(s)
adjective:: Yemeni

Ethnic groups

predominantly Arab; but also Afro-Arab, South Asians, Europeans

Religions

Muslim including Shaf'i (Sunni) and Zaydi (Shi'a), small numbers of Jewish, Christian, and Hindu

Languages

Arabic

Government

Republic; President Lt. Gen. Ali Abdallah SALIH (since 22 May 1990, the former president of North Yemen, assumed office upon the merger of North and South Yemen); Prime Minister Dr. Abd al-Karim Ali al-IRYANI (since NA April 1998)

18 fields

House of Representatives, 296 seats, elected 27 April 1997one dot, one seat

GPC 189Islah 52independents 54election pending 1

Country name

conventional long form:: Republic of Yemen
conventional short form:: Yemen
local long form:: Al Jumhuriyah al Yamaniyah
local short form:: Al Yaman

Data code

Government type

republic

Capital

Sanaa

Administrative divisions

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

note: there may be three new governorates - the capital city of Sanaa, Amran, Dala'a

Independence

22 May 1990, Republic of Yemen was established 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)

National holiday

Proclamation of the Republic, 22 May (1990)

Constitution

16 May 1991; amended 29 September 1994

Legal system

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

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

chief of state:: President Lt. Gen. Ali Abdallah SALIH (since 22 May 1990, the former president of North Yemen, assumed office upon the merger of North and South Yemen); Vice President Maj. Gen. Abd al-Rab Mansur al-HADI (since 3 October 1994)
head of government:: Prime Minister Dr. Abd al-Karim Ali al-IRYANI (since NA April 1998)
cabinet:: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister
elections:: president elected by direct, popular vote for a five-year term;
election last held 23 September 1999 (next to be held NA 2004);
vice president appointed by the president;
prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president
election results:: Ali Abdallah SALIH elected president; percent of vote: Ali Abdallah SALIH 96.3%, Najeeb Qahtan AL-SHAABI 3.7%

Legislative branch

unicameral House of Representatives (301 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)

elections:: last held 27 April 1997 (next to be held NA April 2001)
election results:: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - GPC 189, Islah 52, Nasserite Unionist Party 3, National Arab Socialist Baath Party 2, independents 54, election pending 1

note: in May 1997, the president created a consultative council, sometimes referred to as the upper house of Parliament; its 59 members are all appointed by the president

Judicial branch

Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders

there are over 12 political parties active in Yemen, some of the more prominent are: General People's Congress or GPC [President Ali Abdallah SALIH];
Islamic Reform Grouping or Islah [Shaykh Abdallah bin Husayn al-AHMAR];
National Arab Socialist Baath Party [Dr. Qassim SALAAM];
Nasserite Unionist Party [Abdel Malik al-MAKHLAFI];
Yemeni Socialist Party or YSP [Ali Salih MYQBIL]

note: President SALIH's General People's Congress or GPC won a landslide victory in the April 1997 legislative election and no longer governs in coalition with Shaykh Abdallah bin Husayn al-AHMAR's Islamic Reform Grouping or Islah - the two parties had been in coalition since the end of the civil war in 1994;

the YSP, a loyal opposition party, boycotted the April 1997 legislative election

International organization participation

ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission:: Ambassador Abd al-Wahhab Abdallah al-HAJRI
chancery:: Suite 705, 2600 Virginia Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037
telephone:: [1] (202) 965-4760
FAX:: [1] (202) 337-2017

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission:: Ambassador Barbara K. BODINE
embassy:: Dhahr Himyar Zone, Sheraton Hotel District, Sanaa
mailing address:: P. O. Box 22347, Sanaa
telephone:: [967] (1) 238842
FAX:: [967] (1) 251563

Flag description

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 heraldic eagle centered in the white band

Economy

Yemen, one of the poorest countries in the Arab world, reported strong growth in the mid-1990s with the onset of oil production, but was harmed by low oil prices in 1998.

31 fields

Real growth rate

(1999 est.)industrial production growth: NA%

Inflation, consumer prices

10%

(1999 est.)

Unemployment rate

30%

(1995 est.)

Debt - external

$4.5billion

(1999)

GDP - composition by sector(1998)

agriculture 20%industry 42%services 38% (1998)

Trading partnersexports left, imports right

31%

China

25%

South Korea

22%

Thailand

UAE

France

Italy

Saudi Arabia

Japan

Exports $2 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)Imports $2.3 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)(1998 est.)

Budget

Revenues

$1.8 billionExpenditures

$1.95 billion (1999 est.)

expenditures including capital expenditures of $NA

Electricity

fossil fuel 100%hydro 0% · nuclear 0% · other 0%

Electricity production

2.24 billion (1998)Electricity consumption

2.083 billion (1998)

Economy - overview

Yemen, one of the poorest countries in the Arab world, reported strong growth in the mid-1990s with the onset of oil production, but was harmed by low oil prices in 1998. Yemen has embarked on an IMF-supported structural adjustment program designed to modernize and streamline the economy, which has led to foreign debt relief and restructuring.

Aided by higher oil prices in 1999, Yemen worked to maintain tight control over spending and implement additional components of the IMF program. The high population growth rate of 3.4% and internal political dissension complicate the government's task.

GDP

purchasing power parity - $12.7 billion (1999 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $750 (1999 est.)

Population below poverty line

NA%

Labor force

Labor force - by occupation

most people are employed in agriculture and herding or as expatriate laborers;
services, construction, industry, and commerce account for less than one-half of the labor force

Industries

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

Agriculture - products

grain, fruits, vegetables, qat (mildly narcotic shrub), coffee, cotton;
dairy products, poultry, beef;
fish

Exports

$2 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)

Exports - commodities

crude oil, cotton, coffee, dried and salted fish

Imports

$2.3 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)

Imports - commodities

food and live animals, machinery and equipment, manufactured goods

Economic aid - recipient

$176.1 million (1995)

Currency

Yemeni rial (YER) = 100 fils

Exchange rates

Yemeni rials (YER) per US$1 - 159.70 (January 2000), 160.700 (first quarter 1999), 135.882 (1998), 129.281 (1997), 94.157 (1996), 40.839 (1995)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

8 fields

Mobile cellular

8,250

(1995)

Internet users

(1999)

Fixed lines

188,000

(1998)

Telephone system

since unification in 1990, efforts have been made to create a national telecommunications network

domestic:: the network consists of microwave radio relay, cable, and tropospheric scatter
international:: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 2 Arabsat;
microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia and Djibouti