Compare Qatar (2008) - Netherlands (2006)

Compare Qatar (2008) z Netherlands (2006)

	Qatar (2008)	Netherlands (2006)

Administrative divisions	10 municipalities (baladiyat, singular - baladiyah); Ad Dawhah, Al Ghuwayriyah, Al Jumayliyah, Al Khawr, Al Wakrah, Ar Rayyan, Jarayan al Batinah, Madinat ash Shamal, Umm Sa'id, Umm Salal	12 provinces (provincies, singular - provincie); Drenthe, Flevoland, Friesland (Fryslan), Gelderland, Groningen, Limburg, Noord-Brabant, Noord-Holland, Overijssel, Utrecht, Zeeland, Zuid-Holland
Age structure	0-14 years: 23.1% (male 106,853/female 102,713) 15-64 years: 72.9% (male 455,631/female 206,099) 65 years and over: 4% (male 26,689/female 9,244) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 18% (male 1,515,123/female 1,445,390) 15-64 years: 67.8% (male 5,656,448/female 5,525,481) 65 years and over: 14.2% (male 994,723/female 1,354,296) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	fruits, vegetables; poultry, dairy products, beef; fish	grains, potatoes, sugar beets, fruits, vegetables; livestock
Airports	5 (2007)	27 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 3 over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007)	total: 20 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 2 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007)	total: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 4 (2006)
Area	total: 11,437 sq km land: 11,437 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 41,526 sq km land: 33,883 sq km water: 7,643 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Connecticut	slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey
Background	Ruled by the al-Thani family since the mid-1800s, Qatar transformed itself from a poor British protectorate noted mainly for pearling into an independent state with significant oil and natural gas revenues. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Qatari economy was crippled by a continuous siphoning off of petroleum revenues by the Amir, who had ruled the country since 1972. His son, the current Amir HAMAD bin Khalifa al-Thani, overthrew him in a bloodless coup in 1995. In 2001, Qatar resolved its longstanding border disputes with both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Oil and natural gas revenues enable Qatar to have one of the highest per capita incomes in the world.	The Dutch United Provinces declared their independence from Spain in 1579; during the 17th century, they became a leading seafaring and commercial power, with settlements and colonies around the world. After a 20-year French occupation, a Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815. In 1830 Belgium seceded and formed a separate kingdom. The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I, but suffered invasion and occupation by Germany in World War II. A modern, industrialized nation, the Netherlands is also a large exporter of agricultural products. The country was a founding member of NATO and the EEC (now the EU), and participated in the introduction of the euro in 1999.
Birth rate	15.56 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	10.9 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $23.5 billion expenditures: $19.61 billion (2007 est.)	revenues: $291.8 billion expenditures: $303.7 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)
Capital	name: Doha geographic coordinates: 25 17 N, 51 32 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	name: Amsterdam geographic coordinates: 52 23 N, 4 54 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October note: The Hague (seat of government)
Climate	arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers	temperate; marine; cool summers and mild winters
Coastline	563 km	451 km
Constitution	ratified by public referendum on 29 April 2003, endorsed by the Amir on 8 June 2004, effective on 9 June 2005	adopted 1815; amended many times, most recently in 2002
Country name	conventional long form: State of Qatar conventional short form: Qatar local long form: Dawlat Qatar local short form: Qatar note: closest approximation of the native pronunciation falls between cutter and gutter, but not like guitar	conventional long form: Kingdom of the Netherlands conventional short form: Netherlands local long form: Koninkrijk der Nederlanden local short form: Nederland
Death rate	4.82 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	8.68 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$31.07 billion (31 December 2007 est.)	$1.645 trillion (30 June 2005)
Dependent areas	-	Aruba, Netherlands Antilles
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); charge d'Affaires Michael A. RATNEY embassy: Al-Luqta District, 22 February Road, Doha mailing address: P. O. Box 2399, Doha telephone: [974] 488 4298 FAX: [974] 488 4176	chief of mission: Ambassador Roland E. ARNALL embassy: Lange Voorhout 102, 2514 EJ, The Hague mailing address: PSC 71, Box 1000, APO AE 09715 telephone: [31] (70) 310-2209 FAX: [31] (70) 361-4688 consulate(s) general: Amsterdam
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Ali Fahad al-Shahwany al-HAJRID chancery: 2555 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 274-1600 and 274-1603 FAX: [1] (202) 237-0061 consulate(s) general: Houston	chief of mission: Ambassador Christiaan Mark Johan KRONER chancery: 4200 Linnean Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-5300 FAX: [1] (202) 362-3430 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New York consulate(s): Boston
Disputes - international	none	none
Economic aid - donor	-	ODA, $4 billion (2003 est.)
Economic aid - recipient	$2.18 million (2004)	-
Economy - overview	Qatar is in the midst of an economic boom supported by its expanding production of natural gas and oil. Economic policy is focused on development of Qatar's nonassociated natural gas reserves and increasing private and foreign investment in non-energy sectors. Oil and gas account for more than 60% of GDP, roughly 85% of export earnings, and 70% of government revenues. Oil and gas have made Qatar one of the world's faster growing and higher per-capita income countries - equal to the EU in 2007 per-capita income. Sustained high oil prices and increased natural gas exports in recent years have helped build Qatar's budget and trade surpluses and foreign reserves. Proved oil reserves of more than 15 billion barrels should ensure continued output at current levels for 22 years. Qatar's proved reserves of natural gas are roughly 25 trillion cubic meters, about 15% of the world total and third largest in the world. Qatar has permitted substantial foreign investment in the development of its gas fields during the last decade and became the world's top liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter in 2007.	The Netherlands has a prosperous and open economy, which depends heavily on foreign trade. The economy is noted for stable industrial relations, moderate unemployment and inflation, a sizable current account surplus, and an important role as a European transportation hub. Industrial activity is predominantly in food processing, chemicals, petroleum refining, and electrical machinery. A highly mechanized agricultural sector employs no more than 2% of the labor force but provides large surpluses for the food-processing industry and for exports. The Netherlands, along with 11 of its EU partners, began circulating the euro currency on 1 January 2002. The country continues to be one of the leading European nations for attracting foreign direct investment. Economic growth slowed considerably in 2001-05, as part of the global economic slowdown, but for the four years before that, annual growth averaged nearly 4%, well above the EU average.
Electricity - consumption	12.52 billion kWh (2005)	101.6 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	3.8 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	20.8 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	13.54 billion kWh (2005)	95 billion kWh (2004)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: Qurayn Abu al Bawl 103 m	lowest point: Zuidplaspolder -7 m highest point: Vaalserberg 322 m
Environment - current issues	limited natural fresh water resources are increasing dependence on large-scale desalination facilities	water pollution in the form of heavy metals, organic compounds, and nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates; air pollution from vehicles and refining activities; acid rain
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
Ethnic groups	Arab 40%, Indian 18%, Pakistani 18%, Iranian 10%, other 14%	Dutch 83%, other 17% (of which 9% are non-Western origin mainly Turks, Moroccans, Antilleans, Surinamese, and Indonesians) (1999 est.)
Exchange rates	Qatari rials per US dollar - 3.64 (2007), 3.64 (2006), 3.64 (2005), 3.64 (2004), 3.64 (2003)	euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)
Executive branch	chief of state: Amir HAMAD bin Khalifa al-Thani (since 27 June 1995 when, as heir apparent, he ousted his father, Amir KHALIFA bin Hamad al-Thani, in a bloodless coup); Heir Apparent TAMIM bin Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, fourth son of the monarch (selected Heir Apparent by the monarch on 5 August 2003); note - Amir HAMAD also holds the positions of Minister of Defense and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces head of government: Prime Minister HAMAD bin Jasim bin Jabir al-Thani (since 3 April 2007); Deputy Prime Minister Abdallah bin Hamad al-ATIYAH (since 3 April 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary note: in April 2007, Qatar held nationwide elections for a 29-member Central Municipal Council (CMC), which has limited consultative powers aimed at improving the provision of municipal services; the first election for the CMC was held in March 1999	chief of state: Queen BEATRIX (since 30 April 1980); Heir Apparent WILLEM-ALEXANDER (born 27 April 1967), son of the monarch head of government: Prime Minister Jan Peter BALKENENDE (since 22 July 2002) and Deputy Prime Ministers Gerrit ZALM (since 27 May 2003) and Laurens Jan BRINKHORST (since 31 March 2005); note - Prime Minister BALKENENDE tendered his resignation on 30 June 2006 cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; following Second Chamber elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch; vice prime ministers appointed by the monarch note: there is also a Council of State composed of the monarch, heir apparent, and councilors that provides consultations to the cabinet on legislative and administrative policy
Exports	960,600 bbl/day (2004)	1.418 million bbl/day (2001)
Exports - commodities	liquefied natural gas (LNG), petroleum products, fertilizers, steel	machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels; foodstuffs
Exports - partners	Japan 40.2%, South Korea 16.4%, Singapore 6.5%, Thailand 4.1% (2006)	Germany 24.9%, Belgium 13%, France 9.4%, UK 9.1%, Italy 5.7%, US 4.3%, Spain 4.1% (2005)
Fiscal year	1 April - 31 March	calendar year
Flag description	maroon with a broad white serrated band (nine white points) on the hoist side	three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blue; similar to the flag of Luxembourg, which uses a lighter blue and is longer; one of the oldest flags in constant use, originating with WILLIAM I, Prince of Orange, in the latter half of the 16th century
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 0.1% industry: 73.5% services: 26.4% (2007 est.)	agriculture: 2.1% industry: 24.4% services: 73.6% (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	7.8% (2007 est.)	1.5% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	25 30 N, 51 15 E	52 30 N, 5 45 E
Geography - note	strategic location in central Persian Gulf near major petroleum deposits	located at mouths of three major European rivers (Rhine, Maas or Meuse, and Schelde)
Heliports	1 (2007)	1 (2006)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: 2.5% highest 10%: 22.9% (1999)
Illicit drugs	-	major European producer of ecstasy, illicit amphetamines, and other synthetic drugs; important gateway for cocaine, heroin, and hashish entering Europe; major source of US-bound ecstasy; large financial sector vulnerable to money laundering
Imports	0 bbl/day (2004)	2.284 million bbl/day (2001)
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, food, chemicals	machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, fuels, foodstuffs, clothing
Imports - partners	France 13.3%, Japan 10.2%, US 9.3%, Italy 8.9%, Germany 7.9%, UK 6.2%, Saudi Arabia 5.7%, South Korea 4.7% (2006)	Germany 16.6%, Belgium 9.3%, China 8.8%, US 7.6%, UK 5.8%, France 4.7%, Russia 4.4% (2005)
Independence	3 September 1971 (from UK)	23 January 1579 (the northern provinces of the Low Countries conclude the Union of Utrecht breaking with Spain; on 26 July 1581 they formally declared their independence with an Act of Abjuration; however, it was not until 30 January 1648 and the Peace of Westphalia that Spain recognized this independence)
Industrial production growth rate	8% (2007 est.)	-1.4% (2005 est.)
Industries	crude oil production and refining, ammonia, fertilizers, petrochemicals, steel reinforcing bars, cement, commercial ship repair	agroindustries, metal and engineering products, electrical machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum, construction, microelectronics, fishing
Infant mortality rate	total: 17.46 deaths/1,000 live births male: 20.6 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 4.96 deaths/1,000 live births male: 5.52 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	12% (2007 est.)	1.7% (2005 est.)
International organization participation	ABEDA, ACC, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	AfDB, Arctic Council (observer), AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CBSS (observer), CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Irrigated land	130 sq km (2002)	5,650 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Courts of First Instance, Appeal, and Cassation; an Administrative Court and a Constitutional Court were established in 2007; note - all judges are appointed by Amiri Decree based on the recommendation of the Supreme Judiciary Council for renewable three-year terms	Supreme Court or Hoge Raad (justices are nominated for life by the monarch)
Labor force	638,000 (2007 est.)	7.53 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture: 2% industry: 19% services: 79% (2004 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 60 km border countries: Saudi Arabia 60 km	total: 1,027 km border countries: Belgium 450 km, Germany 577 km
Land use	arable land: 1.64% permanent crops: 0.27% other: 98.09% (2005)	arable land: 21.96% permanent crops: 0.77% other: 77.27% (2005)
Languages	Arabic (official), English commonly used as a second language	Dutch (official), Frisian (official)
Legal system	based on Islamic and civil law codes; discretionary system of law controlled by the Amir, although civil codes are being implemented; Islamic law dominates family and personal matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	civil law system incorporating French penal theory; constitution does not permit judicial review of acts of the States General; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch	unicameral Advisory Council or Majlis al-Shura (35 seats; members appointed) note: no legislative elections have been held since 1970 when there were partial elections to the body; Council members have had their terms extended every year since the new constitution came into force on 9 June 2005; the constitution provides for a new 45-member Advisory Council or Majlis al-Shura; the public would elect two-thirds of the Majlis al-Shura; the Amir would appoint the remaining members; preparations are underway to conduct elections to the Majlis al-Shura	bicameral States General or Staten Generaal consists of the First Chamber or Eerste Kamer (75 seats; members indirectly elected by the country's 12 provincial councils for four-year terms) and the Second Chamber or Tweede Kamer (150 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: First Chamber - last held 25 May 2003 (next to be held May 2007); Second Chamber - last held 22 November 2006 (next to be held November 2010) election results: First Chamber - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CDA 23, PvdA 19, VVD 15, Green Party 5, Socialist Party 4, D66 3, other 6; Second Chamber - percent of vote by party - CDA 26.5, PvdA 21.2%, Socialist Party 16.6%, VVD 14.6%, Party for Freedom 5.9%, Green Party 4.6%, Christian Union 4.0%; seats by party - CDA 41, PvdA 33, Socialist Party 25, VVD 22, Party for Freedom 9, Green Party 7, Christian Union 6, other 7
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 74.14 years male: 71.6 years female: 76.82 years (2007 est.)	total population: 78.96 years male: 76.39 years female: 81.67 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 89% male: 89.1% female: 88.6% (2004 census)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.)
Location	Middle East, peninsula bordering the Persian Gulf and Saudi Arabia	Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between Belgium and Germany
Map references	Middle East	Europe
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: as determined by bilateral agreements or the median line	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 20 ships (1000 GRT or over) 574,969 GRT/856,057 DWT by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 2, chemical tanker 2, container 8, liquefied gas 2, petroleum tanker 4, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 7 (Kuwait 7) registered in other countries: 3 (Liberia 2, Panama 1) (2007)	total: 558 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,042,775 GRT/5,016,265 DWT by type: bulk carrier 29, cargo 345, chemical tanker 29, container 59, liquefied gas 12, passenger 14, passenger/cargo 14, petroleum tanker 16, refrigerated cargo 19, roll on/roll off 18, specialized tanker 3 foreign-owned: 157 (Australia 1, Belgium 2, Denmark 9, Finland 13, Germany 56, Ireland 10, Netherlands Antilles 1, Norway 7, Sweden 26, UK 19, US 13) registered in other countries: 222 (Antigua and Barbuda 14, Australia 2, Austria 2, Bahamas 24, Canada 1, Cayman Islands 4, Cyprus 18, Gibraltar 5, Isle of Man 1, Liberia 29, Luxembourg 2, Malta 6, Marshall Islands 1, Netherlands Antilles 54, Norway 3, Panama 21, Philippines 19, Portugal 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 5, Singapore 2, UK 3, US 4, unknown 1) (2006)
Military branches	Qatari Amiri Land Force (QALF), Qatari Amiri Navy (QAN), Qatari Amiri Air Force (QAAF) (2007)	Royal Netherlands Army, Royal Netherlands Navy (includes Naval Air Service and Marine Corps), Royal Netherlands Air Force (Koninklijke Luchtmacht, KLu), Royal Military Police, Defense Interservice Command (DICO) (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$9.408 billion (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	10% (2005 est.)	1.6% (2004)
National holiday	Independence Day, 3 September (1971); also observed is National Day, 18 December	Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA in 1909 and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX in 1980), 30 April
Nationality	noun: Qatari(s) adjective: Qatari	noun: Dutchman(men), Dutchwoman(women) adjective: Dutch
Natural hazards	haze, dust storms, sandstorms common	flooding
Natural resources	petroleum, natural gas, fish	natural gas, petroleum, peat, limestone, salt, sand and gravel, arable land
Net migration rate	13.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	2.72 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines	condensate 322 km; condensate/gas 209 km; gas 1,970 km; liquid petroleum gas 87 km; oil 741 km (2007)	condensate 81 km; gas 7,229 km; oil 578 km; refined products 716 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders	none	Christian Democratic Appeal or CDA [Ernst Hirsch BALLIN]; Christian Union Party [Andre ROUVOET]; Democrats 66 or D66 [Lousewies VAN DER LAAN]; Green Party [Femke HALSEMA]; Labor Party or PvdA [Wouter BOS]; List Pim Fortuyn [Ton VAN DILLEN]; Party for Freedom [Geert WILDERS]; People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (Liberal) or VVD [Pieter WINSEMIUS]; Socialist Party [Jan MARIJNISSEN]; plus a few minor parties
Political pressure groups and leaders	none	Netherlands Trade Union Federation or FNV (consisting of a merger of Socialist and Catholic trade unions); Christian Trade Union Federation or CNV; Trade Union Federation of Middle and High Personnel or MHP; Federation of Catholic and Protestant Employers Associations; Interchurch Peace Council or IKV; large multinational firms; the nondenominational Federation of Netherlands Enterprises
Population	907,229 (July 2007 est.)	16,491,461 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	10.5% NA%
Population growth rate	2.386% (2007 est.)	0.49% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 4, FM 246, shortwave 3 (2004)
Railways	-	total: 2,808 km standard gauge: 2,808 km 1.435-m gauge (2,061 km electrified) (2005)
Religions	Muslim 77.5%, Christian 8.5%, other 14% (2004 census)	Roman Catholic 31%, Dutch Reformed 13%, Calvinist 7%, Muslim 5.5%, other 2.5%, none 41% (2002)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 2.211 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 2.887 male(s)/female total population: 1.852 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: modern system centered in Doha domestic: combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular telephone density is roughly 130 telephones per 100 persons international: country code - 974; 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 Bahrain; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia and UAE; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat	general assessment: highly developed and well maintained domestic: extensive fixed-line fiber-optic network; cellular telephone system is one of the largest in Europe with five major network operators utilizing the third generation of the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) international: country code - 31; 9 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions) (2004)
Telephones - main lines in use	228,300 (2006)	7.6 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	919,800 (2006)	15.834 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations	1 (plus 3 repeaters) (2001)	21 (plus 26 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain	mostly flat and barren desert covered with loose sand and gravel	mostly coastal lowland and reclaimed land (polders); some hills in southeast
Total fertility rate	2.75 children born/woman (2007 est.)	1.66 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	0.7% (2007 est.)	6.6% (2005 est.)
Waterways	-	6,183 km (navigable for ships of 50 tons) (2005)

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