Kuwait (2003) | Reunion (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 5 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Ahmadi, Al Farwaniyah, Al 'Asimah, Al Jahra', Hawalli | none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 27.9% (male 310,008; female 298,474)
15-64 years: 69.5% (male 970,282; female 547,753) 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 36,306; female 20,338) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 31.3% (male 121,119; female 115,501)
15-64 years: 62.8% (male 233,607; female 240,502) 65 years and over: 5.9% (male 18,036; female 26,406) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | practically no crops; fish | sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn |
Airports | 6 (2002) | 2 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
- |
Area | total: 17,820 sq km
land: 17,820 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 2,517 sq km
land: 2,507 sq km water: 10 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Jersey | slightly smaller than Rhode Island |
Background | Britain oversaw foreign relations and defense for the ruling Kuwaiti AL-SABAH dynasty from 1899 until independence in 1961. Kuwait was attacked and overrun by Iraq on 2 August 1990. Following several weeks of aerial bombardment, a US-led, UN coalition began a ground assault on 23 February 1991 that liberated Kuwait in four days. Kuwait spent more than $5 billion to repair oil infrastructure damaged during 1990-91. | The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration, supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians, gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route. |
Birth rate | 21.83 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 20.17 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $11 billion
expenditures: $17.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY 02/03) |
revenues: $1.26 billion
expenditures: $2.62 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998) |
Capital | Kuwait | Saint-Denis |
Climate | dry desert; intensely hot summers; short, cool winters | tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April |
Coastline | 499 km | 207 km |
Constitution | approved and promulgated 11 November 1962 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: State of Kuwait
conventional short form: Kuwait local long form: Dawlat al Kuwayt local short form: Al Kuwayt |
conventional long form: Department of Reunion
conventional short form: Reunion local long form: none local short form: Ile de la Reunion former: Bourbon Island |
Currency | Kuwaiti dinar (KD) | euro (EUR) |
Death rate | 2.45 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 5.49 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $10.4 billion (2000 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Richard H. JONES
embassy: Bayan, Area 14, Al-Masjed Al-Aqsa Street (near the Bayan palace), Kuwait City mailing address: P. O. Box 77 Safat, 13001 Safat, Kuwait Unit 69000, APO AE 09880-9000 telephone: [965] 539-5307, ext. 2240 FAX: [965] 538-0282 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Sheikh SALIM al-Abdallah Jabir Al Sabah
chancery: 2940 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-0702 FAX: [1] (202) 966-0517 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | the Kuwait 1994 land and Khawr 'Abd Allah channel boundary demarcation ended Iraqi claims to Kuwait and Bubiyan and Warbah islands; Kuwait and Saudi Arabia are negotiating maritime boundary with Iran | none |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France |
Economy - overview | Kuwait is a small, rich, relatively open economy with proved crude oil reserves of about 98 billion barrels - 10% of world reserves. Petroleum accounts for nearly half of GDP, 95% of export revenues, and 80% of government income. Kuwait's climate limits agricultural development. Consequently, with the exception of fish, it depends almost wholly on food imports. About 75% of potable water must be distilled or imported. Kuwait continues its discussions with foreign oil companies to develop fields in the northern part of the country. Oil production declined by an estimated 8% in 2002 but is expected to return to the 2001 level in 2003. | The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but services now dominate. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to one-third of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrates the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France. |
Electricity - consumption | 29.29 billion kWh (2001) | 1.005 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 31.49 billion kWh (2001) | 1.08 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel: 55.5%
hydro: 44.5% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 306 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m |
Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources; some of world's largest and most sophisticated desalination facilities provide much of the water; air and water pollution; desertification | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Endangered Species, Marine Dumping |
- |
Ethnic groups | Kuwaiti 45%, other Arab 35%, South Asian 9%, Iranian 4%, other 7% | French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian |
Exchange rates | Kuwaiti dinars per US dollar - 0.3 (2002), 0.31 (2001), 0.31 (2000), 0.3 (1999), 0.3 (1998) | euros per US dollar - 1.06 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Amir JABIR al-Ahmad al-Jabir Al Sabah (since 31 December 1977)
head of government: Prime Minister SABAH al-Ahmad al-Jabir Al Sabah (since 13 July 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister NAWWAF al-Ahmad Al Sabah (since 2003); Deputy Prime Ministers JABIR MUBARAK al-Hamad Al Sabah (since 2001) and Muhammad Dayfallah al-SHARAR (since 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister and approved by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Gonthier FRIEDERICI (since NA)
head of government: President of the General Council Jean-Luc POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | oil and refined products, fertilizers | sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%, (1993) |
Exports - partners | Japan 24.4%, South Korea 12.9%, US 11.9%, Singapore 10.1%, Taiwan 7%, Netherlands 4.5%, Pakistan 4.4% (2002) | France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2000) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a black trapezoid based on the hoist side | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $36.85 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4.174 billion (1999 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 60%
industry: 39.7% services: 0.3% (2000) |
agriculture: 8%
industry: 19% services: 73% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $17,500 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,600 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -2% (2002 est.) | 2.5% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 29 30 N, 45 45 E | 21 06 S, 55 36 E |
Geography - note | strategic location at head of Persian Gulf | this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean |
Heliports | 3 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 4,450 km
paved: 3,587 km unpaved: 863 km (1999 est.) |
total: 2,724 km
paved: 1,300 km (including 73 km of four-lane road) unpaved: 1,424 km (1994) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food, construction materials, vehicles and parts, clothing | manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products |
Imports - partners | US 13.1%, Japan 11.1%, Germany 9.7%, Saudi Arabia 6.6%, UK 6%, Italy 5.4%, France 5.2% (2002) | France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2000) |
Independence | 19 June 1961 (from UK) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | -5% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Industries | petroleum, petrochemicals, desalination, food processing, construction materials | sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction |
Infant mortality rate | total: 10.57 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 11.58 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 8.13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.89 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (2002 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, BDEAC, CAEU, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | FZ, InOC, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 3 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 60 sq km (1998 est.) | 120 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Court of Appeal | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 1.3 million
note: non-Kuwaitis represent about 80% of the labor force. (1998 est.) |
309,900 (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA, industries NA, services NA | agriculture 13%, industry 12%, services 75% (2000) |
Land boundaries | total: 462 km
border countries: Iraq 240 km, Saudi Arabia 222 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.34%
permanent crops: 0.06% other: 99.6% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 13.2%
permanent crops: 2% other: 84.8% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Arabic (official), English widely spoken | French (official), Creole widely used |
Legal system | civil law system with Islamic law significant in personal matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | French law |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Umma (50 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 6 July 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - Islamists 21, government supporters 14, liberals 3, and independents 12; note - all cabinet ministers are also ex officio members of the National Assembly |
unicameral General Council (49 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004); Regional Council - last held 15 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PCR 19, UDF 9, RPR 8, various right-wing candidates 4, various left-wing candidates 5 note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held NA 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, UMP 1, PCR 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 76.65 years
male: 75.72 years female: 77.62 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 73.43 years
male: 70.03 years female: 77 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83.5% male: 85.1% female: 81.7% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 88.9% male: 87% female: 90.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iraq and Saudi Arabia | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar |
Map references | Middle East | World |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 NM | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 39 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,273,628 GRT/3,638,645 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 1, container 6, liquefied gas 6, livestock carrier 5, petroleum tanker 19, roll on/roll off 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Monaco 1, Saudi Arabia 1 (2002 est.) |
- |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force (including Air Defense Force), National Police Force, National Guard, Coast Guard | no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $1,967.3 million (FY01)
note: Kuwait is changing its fiscal year; the above figure is for July-March 2001; future budget years will be April-March annually |
- |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.5% (FY01) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 845,026 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 198,341 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 508,399 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 101,116 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 18,885 (2003 est.) | males: 6,795 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | National Day, 25 February (1950) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Kuwaiti(s)
adjective: Kuwaiti |
noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)
adjective: Reunionese |
Natural hazards | sudden cloudbursts are common from October to April and bring heavy rain, which can damage roads and houses; sandstorms and dust storms occur throughout the year, but are most common between March and August | periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano |
Natural resources | petroleum, fish, shrimp, natural gas | fish, arable land, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 14.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 169 km; oil 540 km; refined products 57 km (2003) | - |
Political parties and leaders | none; formation of political parties is illegal | Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Paul VERGES]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jean-Claude FRUTEAU]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | several political groups act as de facto parties: Bedouins, merchants, Sunni and Shi'a activists, and secular leftists and nationalists | NA |
Population | 2,183,161
note: includes 1,291,354 non-nationals (July 2003 est.) |
755,171 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.34%
note: this rate reflects a return to pre-Gulf crisis immigration of expatriates (2003 est.) |
1.47% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Ash Shu'aybah, Ash Shuwaykh, Kuwait, Mina' 'Abd Allah, Mina' al Ahmadi, Mina' Su'ud | Le Port, Pointe des Galets |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 6, FM 11, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001) |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Muslim 85% (Sunni 70%, Shi'a 30%), Christian, Hindu, Parsi, and other 15% | Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.77 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.79 male(s)/female total population: 1.52 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | adult males who have been naturalized for 30 years or more or have resided in Kuwait since before 1920 and their male descendants at age 21
note: only 10% of all citizens are eligible to vote; in 1996, naturalized citizens who do not meet the pre-1920 qualification but have been naturalized for 30 years were eligible to vote for the first time |
18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: the quality of service is excellent
domestic: new telephone exchanges provide a large capacity for new subscribers; trunk traffic is carried by microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, and open-wire and fiber-optic cable; a cellular telephone system operates throughout Kuwait, and the country is well supplied with pay telephones international: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; linked to Bahrain, Qatar, UAE via the Fiber-Optic Gulf (FOG) cable; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean, 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean), and 2 Arabsat |
general assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis
domestic: modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network international: radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 412,000 (1997) | 268,500 (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 210,000 (1997) | 197,000 (September 2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 13 (plus several satellite channels) (1997) | 35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | flat to slightly undulating desert plain | mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast |
Total fertility rate | 3.08 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.53 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 7% (2002 est.) | 36% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |