Bahrain (2008) | Uruguay (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 5 governorates; Asamah, Janubiyah, Muharraq, Shamaliyah, Wasat
note: each governorate administered by an appointed governor |
19 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Artigas, Canelones, Cerro Largo, Colonia, Durazno, Flores, Florida, Lavalleja, Maldonado, Montevideo, Paysandu, Rio Negro, Rivera, Rocha, Salto, San Jose, Soriano, Tacuarembo, Treinta y Tres |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 26.9% (male 96,217/female 94,275)
15-64 years: 69.5% (male 284,662/female 207,555) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 13,451/female 12,413) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 23.2% (male 403,041/female 389,427)
15-64 years: 63.6% (male 1,076,960/female 1,095,833) 65 years and over: 13.2% (male 183,877/female 266,782) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruit, vegetables; poultry, dairy products; shrimp, fish | rice, wheat, corn, barley; livestock; fish |
Airports | 3 (2007) | 64 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 14
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 50
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 31 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 665 sq km
land: 665 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 176,220 sq km
land: 173,620 sq km water: 2,600 sq km |
Area - comparative | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than the state of Washington |
Background | In 1783, the al-Khalifa family captured Bahrain from the Persians. In order to secure these holdings, it entered into a series of treaties with the UK during the 19th century that made Bahrain a British protectorate. The archipelago attained its independence in 1971. Bahrain's small size and central location among Persian Gulf countries require it to play a delicate balancing act in foreign affairs among its larger neighbors. Facing declining oil reserves, Bahrain has turned to petroleum processing and refining and has transformed itself into an international banking center. King HAMAD bin Isa al-Khalifa, after coming to power in 1999, pushed economic and political reforms to improve relations with the Shi'a community and Shi'a political societies participated in 2006 parliamentary and municipal elections. Al Wifaq, the largest Shi'a political society, won the largest number of seats in the elected chamber of the legislature. However, Shi'a discontent has resurfaced in recent years with street demonstrations and occasional low-level violence. | Montevideo, founded by the Spanish in 1726 as a military stronghold, soon took advantage of its natural harbor to became an important commercial center. Annexed by Brazil as a separate province in 1821, Uruguay declared its independence four years later and secured its freedom in 1828 after a three-year struggle. The administrations of President BATLLE in the early 20th century established widespread political, social, and economic reforms. A violent Marxist urban guerrilla movement, the Tupamaros, launched in the late 1960s, led Uruguay's president to agree to military control of his administration in 1973. By yearend, the rebels had been crushed, but the military continued to expand its hold throughout the government. Civilian rule was not restored until 1985. Uruguay's political and labor conditions are among the freest on the continent. |
Birth rate | 17.53 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 14.09 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $6.048 billion
expenditures: $5.082 billion (2007 est.) |
revenues: $3.332 billion
expenditures: $3.787 billion, including capital expenditures of $193 million (2004 est.) |
Capital | name: Manama
geographic coordinates: 26 14 N, 50 34 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Montevideo |
Climate | arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers | warm temperate; freezing temperatures almost unknown |
Coastline | 161 km | 660 km |
Constitution | adopted 14 February 2002 | 27 November 1966, effective February 1967; suspended 27 June 1973, new constitution rejected by referendum 30 November 1980; two constitutional reforms approved by plebiscite 26 November 1989 and 7 January 1997 |
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 |
conventional long form: Oriental Republic of Uruguay
conventional short form: Uruguay local long form: Republica Oriental del Uruguay local short form: Uruguay former: Banda Oriental, Cisplatine Province |
Death rate | 4.21 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 9.06 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.692 billion (31 December 2007 est.) | $12.8 billion (March 2004) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador J. Adam ERELI
embassy: Building #979, Road 3119 (next to Al-Ahli Sports Club), Block 331, Zinj District, Manama mailing address: PSC 451, Box 660, FPO AE 09834-5100; international mail: American Embassy, Box 26431, Manama telephone: [973] 1724-2700 FAX: [973] 1727-0547 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Martin J. SILVERSTEIN
embassy: Lauro Muller 1776, Montevideo 11200 mailing address: APO AA 34035 telephone: [598] (2) 418-7777 FAX: [598] (2) 418-8611 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Nasir bin Muhammad 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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Carlos GIANELLI Derois
chancery: 1913 I Street NW, Washington, DC 20006 telephone: [1] (202) 331-1313 through 1316 FAX: [1] (202) 331-8142 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, and New York consulate(s): San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
Disputes - international | none | uncontested dispute with Brazil over certain islands in the Quarai/Cuareim and Invernada streams and the resulting tripoint with Argentina |
Economic aid - recipient | $103.9 million; note - $50 million annually since 1992 from the UAE and Kuwait (2004) | NA |
Economy - overview | With its highly developed communication and transport facilities, Bahrain is home to numerous multinational firms with business in the Gulf. Petroleum production and refining account for over 60% of Bahrain's export receipts, over 70% of government revenues, and 11% of GDP (exclusive of allied industries), underpinning Bahrain's strong economic growth in recent years. Aluminum is Bahrain's second major export after oil. Other major segments of Bahrain's economy are the financial and construction sectors. Bahrain is focused on Islamic banking and is competing on an international scale with Malaysia as a worldwide banking center. Bahrain is actively pursuing the diversification and privatization of its economy to reduce the country's dependence on oil. As part of this effort, in August 2006 Bahrain and the US implemented a Free Trade Agreement (FTA), the first FTA between the US and a Gulf state. Continued strong growth hinges on Bahrain's ability to acquire new natural gas supplies as feedstock to support its expanding petrochemical and aluminum industries. Unemployment, especially among the young, and the depletion of oil and underground water resources are long-term economic problems. | Uruguay's well-to-do economy is characterized by an export-oriented agricultural sector, a well-educated workforce, and high levels of social spending. After averaging growth of 5% annually during 1996-98, in 1999-2002 the economy suffered a major downturn, stemming largely from the spillover effects of the economic problems of its large neighbors, Argentina and Brazil. For instance, in 2001-02 massive withdrawals by Argentina of dollars deposited in Uruguayan banks led to a plunge in the Uruguyan peso and a massive rise in unemployment. Total GDP in these four years dropped by nearly 20%, with 2002 the worst year due to the serious banking crisis. Unemployment rose to nearly 20% in 2002, inflation surged, and the burden of external debt doubled. Cooperation with the IMF limited the damage. The debt swap with private creditors carried out in 2003, which extended the maturity dates on nearly half of Uruguay's $11.3 billion in public debt, substantially alleviated the country's amortization burden in the coming years and restored public confidence. The economy grew about 10% in 2004 as a result of high commodity prices for Uruguayan exports, the weakness of the dollar against the euro, growth in the region, low international interest rates, and greater export competitiveness. |
Electricity - consumption | 7.614 billion kWh (2005) | 5.878 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 954 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 434.2 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 8.187 billion kWh (2005) | 8.536 billion kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Jabal ad Dukhan 122 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Cerro Catedral 514 m |
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 | water pollution from meat packing/tannery industry; inadequate solid/hazardous waste disposal |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | Bahraini 62.4%, non-Bahraini 37.6% (2001 census) | white 88%, mestizo 8%, black 4%, Amerindian (practically nonexistent) |
Exchange rates | Bahraini dinars per US dollar - 0.376 (2007), 0.376 (2006), 0.376 (2005), 0.376 (2004), 0.376 (2003) | Uruguayan pesos per US dollar - 28.704 (2004), 28.209 (2003), 21.257 (2002), 13.319 (2001), 12.1 (2000) |
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 1971); Deputy Prime Ministers ALI bin Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa, MUHAMMAD bin Mubarak al-Khalifa, Jawad al-ARAIDH cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: President Tabare VAZQUEZ (since 1 March 2005) and Vice President Rodolfo NIN NOVA (since 1 March 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Tabare VAZQUEZ (since 1 March 2005) and Vice President Rodolfo NIN NOVA (since 1 March 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president with parliamentary approval elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 31 October 2004 (next to be held October 2009) election results: Tabare VAZQUEZ elected president; percent of vote - Tabare VAZQUEZ 50.5%, Jorge LARRANAGA 35.1%, Guillermo STIRLING 10.3% |
Exports | 235,500 bbl/day (2004) | NA |
Exports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products, aluminum, textiles | meat, rice, leather products, wool, fish, dairy products |
Exports - partners | Saudi Arabia 3.2%, US 3%, Japan 2.3% (2006) | US 17.3%, Brazil 16%, Germany 6.3%, Argentina 6.2%, Mexico 4.2% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 | nine equal horizontal stripes of white (top and bottom) alternating with blue; there is a white square in the upper hoist-side corner with a yellow sun bearing a human face known as the Sun of May and 16 rays alternately triangular and wavy |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 0.3%
industry: 43.6% services: 56% (2007 est.) |
agriculture: 7.9%
industry: 27.4% services: 64.8% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $14,500 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.6% (2007 est.) | 10.2% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 26 00 N, 50 33 E | 33 00 S, 56 00 W |
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 | second-smallest South American country (after Suriname); most of the low-lying landscape (three-quarters of the country) is grassland, ideal for cattle and sheep raising |
Heliports | 1 (2007) | - |
Highways | - | total: 8,983 km
paved: 8,081 km unpaved: 902 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3.7%
highest 10%: 25.8% (1997) |
Imports | 216,300 bbl/day (2004) | NA |
Imports - commodities | crude oil, machinery, chemicals | machinery, chemicals, road vehicles, crude petroleum |
Imports - partners | Saudi Arabia 37.2%, Japan 6.8%, US 6.2%, UK 6.1%, Germany 6%, UAE 4.2% (2006) | Argentina 19.5%, Brazil 19%, Paraguay 12.9%, US 9.2%, China 6% (2004) |
Independence | 15 August 1971 (from UK) | 25 August 1825 (from Brazil) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.5% (2007 est.) | 22% (2004 est.) |
Industries | petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, iron pelletization, fertilizers, Islamic and offshore banking, insurance, ship repairing, tourism | food processing, electrical machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, textiles, chemicals, beverages |
Infant mortality rate | total: 16.18 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 18.89 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 11.95 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.5% (2007 est.) | 7.6% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM (observer), OAS, ONUB, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMOGIP, UNMOT, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (2003) | 1,800 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Civil Appeals Court | Supreme Court (judges are nominated by the president and elected for 10-year terms by the General Assembly) |
Labor force | 363,000
note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (2007 est.) |
1.56 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 1%
industry: 79% services: 20% (1997 est.) |
agriculture 14%, industry 16%, services 70% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,564 km
border countries: Argentina 579 km, Brazil 985 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.82%
permanent crops: 5.63% other: 91.55% (2005) |
arable land: 7.43%
permanent crops: 0.23% other: 92.34% (2001) |
Languages | Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu | Spanish, Portunol, or Brazilero (Portuguese-Spanish mix on the Brazilian frontier) |
Legal system | based on Islamic law and English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Spanish civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral legislature consists of the Consultative Council (40 members appointed by the King) and the Council of Representatives or Chamber of Deputies (40 seats; members directly elected to serve four-year terms)
elections: Council of Representatives - last held November-December 2006 (next election to be held in 2010) election results: Council of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - al Wifaq (Shia) 17, al Asala (Sunni Salafi) 5, al Minbar (Sunni Muslim Brotherhood) 7, independents 11; note - seats by party as of February 2007 - al Wifaq 17, al Asala 8, al Minbar 7, al Mustaqbal (Moderate Sunni pro-government) 4, unassociated independents (all Sunni) 3, independent affiliated with al Wifaq (Sunni oppositionist) 1 |
bicameral General Assembly or Asamblea General consists of Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (30 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and Chamber of Representatives or Camara de Representantes (99 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators - last held 31 October 2004 (next to be held October 2009); Chamber of Representatives - last held 31 October 2004 (next to be held October 2009) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - EP-FA 16, Blanco 11, Colorado Party 3; Chamber of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - EP-FA 52, Blanco 36, Colorado Party 10, Independent Party 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 74.68 years
male: 72.18 years female: 77.25 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 76.13 years
male: 72.92 years female: 79.45 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 86.5% male: 88.6% female: 83.6% (2001 census) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 97.6% female: 98.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Middle East, archipelago in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia | Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Argentina and Brazil |
Map references | Middle East | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: extending to boundaries to be determined |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | total: 7 ships (1000 GRT or over) 220,264 GRT/314,289 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 3, cargo 1, container 2, petroleum tanker 1 foreign-owned: 3 (Kuwait 3) (2007) |
total: 11 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 10,918 GRT/10,342 DWT
by type: cargo 1, chemical tanker 1, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 4 (Argentina 3, Greece 1) registered in other countries: 8 (2005) |
Military branches | Bahrain Defense Forces (BDF): Ground Force (includes Air Defense), Naval Force, Air Force, National Guard | Army, Navy (includes Naval Air Arm, Marines, Maritime Prefecture in wartime), Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $257.5 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.5% (2006) | 2% (2004) |
National holiday | National Day, 16 December (1971); note - 15 August 1971 was the date of independence from the UK, 16 December 1971 was the date of independence from British protection | Independence Day, 25 August (1825) |
Nationality | noun: Bahraini(s)
adjective: Bahraini |
noun: Uruguayan(s)
adjective: Uruguayan |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; dust storms | seasonally high winds (the pampero is a chilly and occasional violent wind which blows north from the Argentine pampas), droughts, floods; because of the absence of mountains, which act as weather barriers, all locations are particularly vulnerable to rapid changes from weather fronts |
Natural resources | oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls | arable land, hydropower, minor minerals, fisheries |
Net migration rate | 0.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -0.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 20 km; oil 52 km (2007) | gas 192 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | political parties prohibited but political societies were legalized per a July 2005 law | Colorado Party [Jorge BATLLE Ibanez]; National Party or Blanco [Luis Alberto LACALLE Herrera]; New Sector/Space Coalition (Nuevo Espacio) [Rafael MICHELINI]; Progressive Encounter/Broad Front Coalition (Encuentro Progresista/Frente Amplio) or EP-FA [Tabare VAZQUEZ]; Independent Party (Partido Independiente) [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Shi'a activists fomented unrest sporadically in 1994-97 and have recently engaged in protests with occasional low-level violence; protests related to a host of issues, including the 2002 constitution, elections, unemployment, and release of detainees; Sunni Islamist legislators support a greater role for Shari'a in daily life; several small leftist and other groups are active | Agrupacion UTE (powerful state worker's union), Rural Association of Uruguay (rancher's association), Uruguayan Construction League, Chamber of Uruguayan Industries (manufacturer's association), Chemist and Pharmaceutical Association (professional organization), Architect's Society of Uruguay (professional organization), the Catholic Church, students |
Population | 708,573
note: includes 235,108 non-nationals (July 2007 est.) |
3,415,920 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 21% of households (2003) |
Population growth rate | 1.392% (2007 est.) | 0.47% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Montevideo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 91, FM 149, shortwave 7 (2001) |
Railways | - | total: 2,073 km
standard gauge: 2,073 km 1.435-m gauge note: 461 km have been taken out of service and 460 km are in partial use (2004) |
Religions | Muslim (Shi'a and Sunni) 81.2%, Christian 9%, other 9.8% (2001 census) | Roman Catholic 66% (less than half of the adult population attends church regularly), Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, nonprofessing or other 31% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.021 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.372 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.084 male(s)/female total population: 1.255 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 20 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
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; landing point for the Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG) submarine cable network that provides links to Asia, Middle East, Europe, and US; tropospheric scatter to Qatar and UAE; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; satellite earth stations - 1 (2007) |
general assessment: fully digitalized
domestic: most modern facilities concentrated in Montevideo; new nationwide microwave radio relay network international: country code - 598; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2002) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 193,300 (2006) | 946,500 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 898,900 (2006) | 652,000 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (1997) | 23 (2002) |
Terrain | mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central escarpment | mostly rolling plains and low hills; fertile coastal lowland |
Total fertility rate | 2.57 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.91 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% (2005 est.) | 13% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | - | 1,600 km (2002) |