Compare Kuwait (2008) - West Bank (2008)

Compare Kuwait (2008) z West Bank (2008)

	Kuwait (2008)	West Bank (2008)

Administrative divisions	6 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Ahmadi, Al 'Asimah, Al Farwaniyah, Al Jahra', Hawalli, Mubarak Al Kabir	-
Age structure	0-14 years: 26.7% (male 340,814/female 328,663) 15-64 years: 70.5% (male 1,128,231/female 636,967) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 44,542/female 26,342) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 42.4% (male 551,243/female 524,800) 15-64 years: 54.2% (male 704,209/female 670,382) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 36,175/female 49,118) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	practically no crops; fish	olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products
Airports	7 (2007)	3 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007)	total: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2007)	-
Area	total: 17,820 sq km land: 17,820 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 5,860 sq km land: 5,640 sq km water: 220 sq km note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than New Jersey	slightly smaller than Delaware
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 AL-SABAH family has ruled since returning to power in 1991, and reestablished an elected legislature that in recent years has become increasingly assertive.	The September 1993 Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements provided for a transitional period of Palestinian self-rule in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Under a series of agreements signed between May 1994 and September 1999, Israel transferred to the Palestinian Authority (PA) security and civilian responsibility for Palestinian-populated areas of the West Bank and Gaza. Negotiations to determine the permanent status of the West Bank and Gaza stalled following the outbreak of an intifada in September 2000, as Israeli forces reoccupied most Palestinian-controlled areas. In April 2003, the Quartet (US, EU, UN, and Russia) presented a roadmap to a final settlement of the conflict by 2005 based on reciprocal steps by the two parties leading to two states, Israel and a democratic Palestine. The proposed date for a permanent status agreement was postponed indefinitely due to violence and accusations that both sides had not followed through on their commitments. Following Palestinian leader Yasir ARAFAT's death in late 2004, Mahmud ABBAS was elected PA president in January 2005. A month later, Israel and the PA agreed to the Sharm el-Sheikh Commitments in an effort to move the peace process forward. In September 2005, Israel unilaterally withdrew all its settlers and soldiers and dismantled its military facilities in the Gaza Strip and withdrew settlers and redeployed soldiers from four small northern West Bank settlements. Nonetheless, Israel controls maritime, airspace, and most access to the Gaza Strip. A November 2005 PA-Israeli agreement authorized the reopening of the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt under joint PA and Egyptian control. In January 2006, the Islamic Resistance Movement, HAMAS, won control of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). The international community refused to accept the HAMAS-led government because it did not recognize Israel, would not renounce violence, and refused to honor previous peace agreements between Israel and the PA. HAMAS took control of the PA government in March 2006, but President ABBAS had little success negotiating with HAMAS to present a political platform acceptable to the international community so as to lift economic sanctions on Palestinians. The PLC was unable to convene throughout most of 2006 as a result of Israel's detention of many HAMAS PLC members and Israeli-imposed travel restrictions on other PLC members. Violent clashes took place between Fatah and HAMAS supporters in the Gaza Strip in 2006 and early 2007, resulting in numerous Palestinian deaths and injuries. ABBAS and HAMAS Political Bureau Chief MISHAL in February 2007 signed the Mecca Agreement in Saudi Arabia that resulted in the formation of a Palestinian National Unity Government (NUG) headed by HAMAS member Ismail HANIYA. However, fighting continued in the Gaza Strip, and in June, HAMAS militants succeeded in a violent takeover of all military and governmental institutions in the Gaza Strip. ABBAS dismissed the NUG and through a series of presidential decrees formed a PA government in the West Bank led by independent Salam FAYYAD. HAMAS rejected the NUG's dismissal and has called for resuming talks with Fatah, but ABBAS has ruled out negotiations until HAMAS agrees to a return of PA control over the Gaza Strip and recognizes the FAYYAD-led government. FAYYAD and his PA government initiated a series of security and economic reforms to improve conditions in the West Bank. ABBAS participated in talks with Israel's Prime Minister OLMERT and secured the release of some Palestinian prisoners and previously withheld customs revenue. During a November 2007 international meeting in Annapolis Maryland, ABBAS and OLMERT agreed to resume peace negotiations with the goal of reaching a final peace settlement by the end of 2008.
Birth rate	21.95 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	30.99 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $66.92 billion expenditures: $36.39 billion (2007 est.)	revenues: $1.149 billion expenditures: $2.31 billion note: includes Gaza Strip (2006)
Capital	name: Kuwait geographic coordinates: 29 22 N, 47 58 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	-
Climate	dry desert; intensely hot summers; short, cool winters	temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters
Coastline	499 km	0 km (landlocked)
Constitution	approved and promulgated 11 November 1962	-
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: none conventional short form: West Bank
Death rate	2.39 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	3.85 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$33.61 billion (31 December 2007 est.)	$NA
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Alan MISENHEIMER embassy: Bayan 36302, Area 14, Al-Masjed Al-Aqsa Street (near the Bayan palace), Kuwait City mailing address: P. O. Box 77 Safat 13001 Kuwait; or PSC 1280 APO AE 09880-9000 telephone: [965] 259-1001 FAX: [965] 538-0282	-
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador SALIM al-Abdallah al-Jabir al-Sabah chancery: 2940 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-0702 FAX: [1] (202) 966-0517	-
Disputes - international	Kuwait and Saudi Arabia continue negotiating a joint maritime boundary with Iran; no maritime boundary exists with Iraq in the Persian Gulf	West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation; Israel continues construction of a "seam line" separation barrier along parts of the Green Line and within the West Bank; Israel withdrew from four settlements in the northern West Bank in August 2005; since 1948, about 350 peacekeepers from the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO), headquartered in Jerusalem, monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating, and assist other UN personnel in the region
Economic aid - recipient	$2.6 million (2004)	$1.4 billion; (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.)
Economy - overview	Kuwait is a small, rich, relatively open economy with self-reported crude oil reserves of about 104 billion barrels - 10% of world reserves. Petroleum accounts for nearly half of GDP, 95% of export revenues, and 80% of government income. High oil prices in recent years have helped build Kuwait's budget and trade surpluses and foreign reserves. As a result of this positive fiscal situation, the need for economic reforms is less urgent and the government has not earnestly pushed through new initiatives. Despite its vast oil reserves, Kuwait experienced power outages during the summer months in 2006 and 2007 because demand exceeded power generating capacity. Power outages are likely to worsen, given its high population growth rates, unless the government can increase generating capacity. In May 2007 Kuwait changed its currency peg from the US dollar to a basket of currencies in order to curb inflation and to reduce its vulnerability to external shocks.	The West Bank - the larger of the two areas comprising the Palestinian Authority (PA) - has experienced a general decline in economic conditions since the second intifada began in September 2000. The downturn has been largely a result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of closures and access restrictions in response to security concerns in Israel - which disrupted labor and trading relationships. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, Israeli military measures in PA areas resulted in the destruction of capital, the disruption of administrative structures, and widespread business closures. International aid of at least $1.14 billion to the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 2004 prevented the complete collapse of the economy and allowed some reforms in the government's financial operations. In 2005, high unemployment and limited trade opportunities - due to continued closures both within the West Bank and externally - stymied growth. Israel's and the international community's financial embargo of the PA when HAMAS ran the PA during March 2006 - June 2007 has interrupted the provision of PA social services and the payment of PA salaries. Since June the Fayyad government in the West Bank has restarted salary payments and the provision of services but would be unable to operate absent high levels of international assistance.
Electricity - consumption	36.28 billion kWh (2005)	NA kWh
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	-
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	NA kWh
Electricity - production	41.11 billion kWh (2005)	NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: unnamed location 306 m	lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 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	adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping	-
Ethnic groups	Kuwaiti 45%, other Arab 35%, South Asian 9%, Iranian 4%, other 7%	Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17%
Exchange rates	Kuwaiti dinars per US dollar - 0.2844 (2007), 0.29 (2006), 0.292 (2005), 0.2947 (2004), 0.298 (2003)	new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.14 (2007), 4.4565 (2006), 4.4877 (2005), 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003)
Executive branch	chief of state: Amir SABAH al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah (since 29 January 2006); Crown Prince NAWAF al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah head of government: Prime Minister NASIR MUHAMMAD al-Ahmad al-Sabah (since 3 April 2007); First Deputy Prime Minister JABIR Mubarak al-Hamad al-Sabah (since 9 February 2006); Deputy Prime Ministers MUHAMMAD al-Sabah al-Salim al-Sabah (since 9 February 2006) and Faysal al-HAJJI (since 5 April 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister and approved by the amir elections: none; the amir is hereditary; the amir appoints the prime minister and deputy prime ministers	-
Exports	2.2 million bbl/day (2004)	$301 million f.o.b.; (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)
Exports - commodities	oil and refined products, fertilizers	olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone
Exports - partners	Japan 20.4%, South Korea 16.2%, Taiwan 10.8%, Singapore 9.7%, US 9%, Netherlands 5.3%, China 4.1% (2006)	Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2006)
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; design, which dates to 1961, based on the Arab revolt flag of World War I	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 0.4% industry: 54.7% services: 44.9% (2007 est.)	agriculture: 8% industry: 13% services: 79% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	5.6% (2007 est.)	-8% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates	29 30 N, 45 45 E	32 00 N, 35 15 E
Geography - note	strategic location at head of Persian Gulf	landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 242 West Bank settlements and 29 East Jerusalem settlements in addition to at least 20 occupied outposts (August 2005 est.)
Heliports	4 (2007)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Imports	2,611 bbl/day (2004)	$2.44 billion c.i.f.; (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)
Imports - commodities	food, construction materials, vehicles and parts, clothing	food, consumer goods, construction materials
Imports - partners	US 14.1%, Germany 7.9%, Japan 7.8%, Saudi Arabia 6.8%, China 5.7%, UK 5.4%, Italy 4.6% (2006)	Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2006)
Independence	19 June 1961 (from UK)	-
Industrial production growth rate	0.8% (2007 est.)	2.4% (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)
Industries	petroleum, petrochemicals, cement, shipbuilding and repair, water desalination, food processing, construction materials	generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers
Infant mortality rate	total: 9.47 deaths/1,000 live births male: 10.48 deaths/1,000 live births female: 8.42 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 18.67 deaths/1,000 live births male: 20.59 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.64 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	3.9% (2007 est.)	3.6% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006)
International organization participation	ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, BDEAC, CAEU, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	-
Irrigated land	130 sq km (2003)	150 sq km; note - includes Gaza Strip (2003)
Judicial branch	High Court of Appeal	-
Labor force	1.167 million note: non-Kuwaitis represent about 80% of the labor force (2007 est.)	605,000 (2006)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: NA% industry: NA% services: NA%	agriculture: 18% industry: 15% services: 67% (2006)
Land boundaries	total: 462 km border countries: Iraq 240 km, Saudi Arabia 222 km	total: 404 km border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km
Land use	arable land: 0.84% permanent crops: 0.17% other: 98.99% (2005)	arable land: 16.9% permanent crops: 18.97% other: 64.13% (2001)
Languages	Arabic (official), English widely spoken	Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood)
Legal system	civil law system with Islamic law significant in personal matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	-
Legislative branch	unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Umma (50 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms; all cabinet ministers are also ex officio voting members of the National Assembly) elections: last held 29 June 2006 (next election to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote by bloc - NA; seats by bloc - Islamic Bloc (Sunni) 17, Popular Bloc 9, National Action Bloc (liberals) 8, independents 16	-
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 77.36 years male: 76.25 years female: 78.52 years (2007 est.)	total population: 73.46 years male: 71.68 years female: 75.35 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93.3% male: 94.4% female: 91% (2005 census)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 92.4% male: 96.7% female: 88% (2004 est.)
Location	Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iraq and Saudi Arabia	Middle East, west of Jordan
Map references	Middle East	Middle East
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm	none (landlocked)
Merchant marine	total: 38 ships (1000 GRT or over) 2,195,831 GRT/3,566,308 DWT by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 1, container 6, liquefied gas 5, livestock carrier 3, petroleum tanker 21 registered in other countries: 28 (Bahrain 3, Comoros 1, Liberia 1, Libya 1, Panama 1, Qatar 7, Saudi Arabia 6, UAE 8) (2007)	-
Military branches	Land Forces, Kuwaiti Navy, Kuwaiti Air Force (Al-Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Kuwaitiya), National Guard (2007)	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	5.3% (2006)	NA
National holiday	National Day, 25 February (1950)	-
Nationality	noun: Kuwaiti(s) adjective: Kuwaiti	noun: NA adjective: NA
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	droughts
Natural resources	petroleum, fish, shrimp, natural gas	arable land
Net migration rate	16.05 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	2.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	gas 269 km; oil 540 km; refined products 57 km (2007)	-
Political parties and leaders	none; formation of political parties is in practice illegal, but is not forbidden by law	-
Political pressure groups and leaders	a number of political groups act as de facto parties; several legislative blocs operate in the National Assembly: tribal groups, merchants, Shi'a activists, Islamists, secular liberals and pro-government deputies; in mid-2006, a coalition of Islamists, liberals, and Shia campaigned successfully for electoral reform to reduce corruption	-
Population	2,505,559 note: includes 1,291,354 non-nationals (July 2007 est.)	2,535,927 note: in addition, there are about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	46% (2007 est.)
Population growth rate	3.561% note: this rate reflects a return to pre-Gulf crisis immigration of expatriates (2007 est.)	2.985% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 6, FM 11, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 0, FM 25, shortwave 0 (2008)
Religions	Muslim 85% (Sunni 70%, Shi'a 30%), other (includes Christian, Hindu, Parsi) 15%	Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.037 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.771 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.691 male(s)/female total population: 1.526 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.736 male(s)/female total population: 1.038 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	NA years of age; universal (adult); note - males in the military or police are not allowed to vote; adult females were allowed to vote as of 16 May 2005; all voters must have been citizens for 20 years	-
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: country code - 965; linked to international submarine cable Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG); linked to Bahrain, Qatar, UAE via the Fiber-Optic Gulf (FOG) cable; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean, 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean), and 2 Arabsat	general assessment: NA domestic: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for fixed line services; the Palestinian JAWAL company provides cellular services international: country code - 970 (2004)
Telephones - main lines in use	510,300 (2005)	349,000 (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	2.536 million (2006)	1.095 million (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)
Television broadcast stations	13 (plus several satellite channels) (1997)	30 (2008)
Terrain	flat to slightly undulating desert plain	mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east
Total fertility rate	2.86 children born/woman (2007 est.)	4.17 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	2.2% (2004 est.)	18.6% (2006)

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