Location:

Middle East, archipelago in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia

Geographic coordinates:

26 00 N, 50 33 E

Map references:

Middle East

Area:

total: 665 sq km
land: 665 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative:

3.5 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:

0 km

Coastline:

161 km

Maritime claims:

territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: extending to boundaries to be determined

Climate:

arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers

Terrain:

mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central escarpment

Elevation extremes:

lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Jabal ad Dukhan 122 m

Natural resources:

oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls

Land use:

arable land: 2.82%
permanent crops: 5.63%
other: 91.55% (2001)

Irrigated land:

50 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:

periodic droughts; dust storms

Environment - current issues:

desertification resulting from the degradation of limited arable land, periods of drought, and dust storms; coastal degradation (damage to coastlines, coral reefs, and sea vegetation) resulting from oil spills and other discharges from large tankers, oil refineries, and distribution stations; lack of freshwater resources, groundwater and seawater are the only sources for all water needs

Environment - international agreements:

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:

close to primary Middle Eastern petroleum sources; strategic location in Persian Gulf, through which much of the Western world's petroleum must transit to reach open ocean

People

    Bahrain

Population:

688,345
note: includes 235,108 non-nationals (July 2005 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 27.8% (male 96,807/female 94,863)
15-64 years: 68.7% (male 275,792/female 197,424)
65 years and over: 3.4% (male 12,078/female 11,381) (2005 est.)

Median age:

total: 29.19 years
male: 32.16 years
female: 25.54 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:

1.51% (2005 est.)

Birth rate:

18.1 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate:

4.08 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate:

1.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.4 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.06 male(s)/female
total population: 1.27 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate:

total: 17.27 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.17 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 14.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 74.23 years
male: 71.76 years
female: 76.78 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate:

2.63 children born/woman (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:

0.2% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:

less than 600 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:

less than 200 (2003 est.)

Nationality:

noun: Bahraini(s)
adjective: Bahraini

Ethnic groups:

Bahraini 62.4%, non-Bahraini 37.6% (2001 census)

Religions:

Muslim (Shi'a and Sunni) 81.2%, Christian 9%, other 9.8% (2001 census)

Languages:

Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu

Literacy:

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 89.1%
male: 91.9%
female: 85% (2003 est.)

Government

    Bahrain

Country name:

conventional long form: Kingdom of Bahrain
conventional short form: Bahrain
local long form: Mamlakat al Bahrayn
local short form: Al Bahrayn
former: Dilmun

Government type:

constitutional hereditary monarchy

Capital:

Manama

Administrative divisions:

12 municipalities (manatiq, singular - mintaqah); Al Hadd, Al Manamah, Al Mintaqah al Gharbiyah, Al Mintaqah al Wusta, Al Mintaqah ash Shamaliyah, Al Muharraq, Ar Rifa' wa al Mintaqah al Janubiyah, Jidd Hafs, Madinat Hamad, Madinat 'Isa, Juzur Hawar, Sitrah
note: all municipalities administered from Manama

Independence :

15 August 1971 (from UK)

National holiday:

National Day, 16 December (1971); note - 15 August 1971 is the date of independence from the UK, 16 December 1971 is the date of independence from British protection

Constitution:

new constitution 14 February 2002

Legal system:

based on Islamic law and English common law

Suffrage:

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:

chief of state: King HAMAD bin Isa al-Khalifa (since 6 March 1999); Heir Apparent Crown Prince SALMAN bin Hamad (son of the monarch, born 21 October 1969)
head of government: Prime Minister KHALIFA bin Salman al-Khalifa (since NA 1971)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch
elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch

Legislative branch:

bicameral Parliament consists of Shura Council (40 members appointed by the King) and House of Deputies (40 members directly elected to serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Deputies - last held 31 October 2002 (next election to be held in 2006)
election results: House of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - independents 21, Sunni Islamists 9, other 10
note: first elections since 7 December 1973; unicameral National Assembly dissolved 26 August 1975; National Action Charter created bicameral legislature on 23 December 2000; approved by referendum 14 February 2001; first legislative session of Parliament held on 25 December 2002

Judicial branch:

High Civil Appeals Court

Political parties and leaders:

political parties prohibited but politically oriented societies are allowed

Political pressure groups and leaders:

Shi'a activists fomented unrest sporadically in 1994-97 and have recently engaged in peaceful protests and marches, demanding the return of an elected National Assembly and an end to unemployment; several small, clandestine leftist and Islamic fundamentalist groups are active

International organization participation:

ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:

chief of mission: Ambassador Nasir al-BALUSHI
chancery: 3502 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 342-1111
FAX: [1] (202) 362-2192
consulate(s) general: New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:

chief of mission: Ambassador William T. MONROE
embassy: Building #979, Road 3119 (next to Al-Ahli Sports Club), Block 331, Zinj District, Manama
mailing address: American Embassy Manama, PSC 451, FPO AE 09834-5100; international mail: American Embassy, Box 26431, Manama
telephone: [973] 1724-2700
FAX: [973] 1727-0547 (consular)

Flag description:

red, the traditional color for flags of Persian Gulf states, with a white serrated band (five white points) on the hoist side; the five points represent the five pillars of Islam

Economy

    Bahrain

Economy - overview:

Petroleum production and refining account for about 60% of Bahrain's export receipts, 60% of government revenues, and 30% of GDP. With its highly developed communication and transport facilities, Bahrain is home to numerous multinational firms with business in the Gulf. A large share of exports consists of petroleum products made from refining imported crude. Construction proceeds on several major industrial projects. Unemployment, especially among the young, and the depletion of oil and underground water resources are major long-term economic problems. In September 2004 Bahrain signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the United States - the first such agreement undertaken by a Gulf state. Both countries must ratify the FTA before it is enforced.

GDP (purchasing power parity):

$14.08 billion (2005 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):

$11.58 billion (2005 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:

5.9% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita:

purchasing power parity - $20,500 (2005 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:

agriculture: 0.6%
industry: 42.5%
services: 56.9% (2005 est.)

Labor force:

380,000
note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (2005 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:

agriculture 1%, industry, commerce, and services 79%, government 20% (1997 est.)

Unemployment rate:

15% (1998 est.)

Population below poverty line:

NA

Household income or consumption by percentage share:

lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA

Inflation rate (consumer prices):

2.7% (2005 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):

14.7% of GDP (2005 est.)

Budget:

revenues: $4.662 billion
expenditures: $3.447 billion, including capital expenditures of $700 million (2005 est.)

Public debt:

51.5% of GDP (2005 est.)

Agriculture - products:

fruit, vegetables; poultry, dairy products; shrimp, fish

Industries:

petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, iron pelletization, fertilizers, offshore banking, ship repairing; tourism

Industrial production growth rate:

2% (2000 est.)

Electricity - production:

7.345 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - consumption:

6.83 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - exports:

0 kWh (2003)

Electricity - imports:

0 kWh (2003)

Oil - production:

188,300 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - consumption:

26,000 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports:

NA (2001)

Oil - imports:

NA (2001)

Oil - proved reserves:

124 million bbl (2005 est.)

Natural gas - production:

32.7 billion cu m (2002 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:

32.7 billion cu m (2002 est.)

Natural gas - exports:

0 cu m (2002 est.)

Natural gas - imports:

0 cu m (2002 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves:

46 billion cu m (2005)

Current account balance:

$1.569 billion (2005 est.)

Exports:

$11.17 billion (2005 est.)

Exports - partners:

Saudi Arabia 3%, US 2.9%, UAE 2.2% (2004)

Imports:

$7.83 billion (2005 est.)

Imports - partners:

Saudi Arabia 32.4%, Japan 7.3%, Germany 6.1%, US 5.6%, UK 5.4%, France 4.8% (2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:

$2.433 billion (2005 est.)

Debt - external:

$6.831 billion (2005 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:

$150 million; note - $50 million annually since 1992 from each of Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Kuwait (2002)

Currency (code):

Bahraini dinar (BHD)

Exchange rates:

Bahraini dinars per US dollar - 0.38 (2005), 0.376 (2004), 0.376 (2003), 0.376 (2002), 0.376 (2001)

Fiscal year:

calendar year

Communications

    Bahrain

Telephones - main lines in use:

185,800 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular:

443,100 (2003)

Telephone system:

general assessment: modern system
domestic: modern fiber-optic integrated services; digital network with rapidly growing use of mobile cellular telephones
international: country code - 973; tropospheric scatter to Qatar and UAE; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; submarine cable to Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia; satellite earth stations - 1 (1997)

Radio broadcast stations:

AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998)

Television broadcast stations:

4 (1997)

Internet country code:

.bh

Internet hosts:

1,334 (2003)

Internet users:

195,700 (2003)

Transportation

    Bahrain

Airports:

4 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:

total: 3
over 3,047 m: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2005 est.)

Heliports:

1 (2005 est.)

Pipelines:

gas 20 km; oil 53 km (2004)

Roadways:

total: 3,498 km
paved: 2,768 km
unpaved: 730 km (2003)

Merchant marine:

total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 219,083 GRT/312,638 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 3, cargo 2, container 2, petroleum tanker 1
foreign-owned: 2 ( Kuwait 2) (2005)

Ports and terminals:

Mina' Salman, Sitrah

Military

    Bahrain

Military branches:

Bahrain Defense Forces (BDF): Ground Force (includes Air Defense), Navy, Air Force, National Guard

Military service age and obligation:

18 years of age for voluntary military service (2001)

Manpower available for military service:

males age 18-49: 202,126 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:

males age 18-49: 161,372 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:

males: 6,013 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:

$628.9 million (2004)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:

6.3% (2004)

Transnational Issues

    Bahrain

Disputes - international:

none