Official name State of Kuwait
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دولة الكويت Dawlat al Kuwayt State of Kuwait |
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| Anthem: Al-Nasheed Al-Watani | |||||
| Capital |
Kuwait City 29°22′N 47°58′E |
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| Largest city | Salimiyah | ||||
| Official language | Arabic | ||||
| Government | nominal constitutional monarchy | ||||
| - Emir | Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah | ||||
| - Crown Prince | Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah | ||||
| - Prime Minister | Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah | ||||
| Independence | |||||
| - From the UK | June 19, 1961 | ||||
| Area | |||||
| - Total |
17,818 km² (157th) 6,880 sq mi |
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| - Water (%) | Negligible | ||||
| Population | |||||
| - 2006 estimate | 1,540,0001 (----) | ||||
| - Density |
131/km² (68th) 339/sq mi |
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| GDP (PPP) | 2005 estimate | ||||
| - Total | $143.31 billion (4) | ||||
| - Per capita | $40,610 (4th) | ||||
| HDI (2006) | 0.871 (high) (33th) | ||||
| Currency | Kuwaiti Dinar (KWD) | ||||
| Time zone | (UTC+3) | ||||
| - Summer (DST) | (UTC+3) | ||||
| Internet TLD | .kw | ||||
| Calling code | +965 | ||||
| 1Figure includes 1.999 million non-nationals (End of 2005 est.) | |||||
The State of Kuwait (Arabic: الكويت) is a small constitutional monarchy on the coast of the Persian Gulf, enclosed by Saudi Arabia in the south and Iraq in the north.
History
Kuwait was established in the 16th century when several clans met in the area now known as "the Kuwait Bay". Oil later transformed Kuwait into one of the richest countries in the Arab peninsula and in 1953 the country became the largest exporter of oil in the Persian Gulf. Having amassed great wealth, Kuwait was the first of the Persian Gulf Arab states to declare independence, on June 19, 1961.
An important period in Kuwait's political, social and economic development was the Souk Al-Manakh stock market crash of 1982.
After being allied with Iraq during the Iran-Iraq War until its end in 1988 (Kuwait paid Iraq to protect it from what it perceived as a threat posed by Iran), Kuwait was invaded and annexed by Iraq (under Saddam Hussein) on August 2, 1990. Hussein's primary justifications included a charge that Kuwaiti territory was in fact an Iraqi province, and that annexation was retaliation for "economic warfare" Kuwait allegedly had waged through slant drilling into oil supplies on Iraqi territories.
Authorized by the UN Security Council, an American-led coalition of 34 nations fought the Persian Gulf War to liberate Kuwait. After six weeks of fierce fighting in early 1991, the coalition forced Iraq to withdraw its troops from Kuwait on February 26, 1991; Kuwait remains under the governance of the Emir, Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jabir Al-Sabah (since 29 January 2006) as an independent state and is of strategic importance to the United States.
Politics
Kuwait is a constitutional monarchy and has the oldest directly elected parliament of the Persian Gulf Arab countries. The appointment of a woman as a cabinet minister was a major breakthrough in Kuwaiti political system and it makes Kuwait the third country in the conservative Persian Gulf Arab monarchies to have a woman cabinet minister.
See also: al-Sabah, al-Sabah Ruling Family, and Elections in KuwaitGeography and climate
Kuwait consists mostly of desert, with little altitude difference. Kuwait is the only country in the world with no natural lake or water reservoir. The islands are:
Auhah Island Bubiyan Island Failaka Island Kubbar Island Miskan Island Qaruh Island Umm al Maradim Island Umm an Namil Island Warbah IslandKuwait enjoys a variable continental climate.
Administrative Divisions
Kuwait is divided into 6 governorates (muhafazat, sing. The governorates include:
Al Ahmadi Al Farwaniyah Al Asimah Al Jahra Hawalli Mubarak Al-KabeerThe major cities are the capital Kuwait, and Jahrah (further in the north-west, 30-minute drive from the capital).
Economy
Kuwait is a small, rich, relatively open economy with proven crude oil reserves of 96 billion barrels (15 km³) - 10% of world reserves. Kuwait continues its discussions with foreign oil companies to develop fields in the northern part of the country. The expenses of the Iraqi invasion and postwar reconstruction placed a heavy economic burden on the country, but by the mid-1990s Kuwait had resumed its pre-invasion prosperity.
The Central Bank of Kuwait in the capital city issues Kuwait’s currency, the Kuwaiti dinar. Kuwait’s oil exports vary depending on internal needs (almost all of Kuwait’s energy is derived from oil), international demand and prices, and production quotas fixed by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), of which Kuwait is a member.
The chief oil companies are -
Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) - International Marketing and Mother Company Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) - A crude oil exploration and development company Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) - Runs Oil Refineries across Kuwait Petrochemicals Industries Company (PIC) - Petrochemical & Oil Exploration Company Equate (EQUATE) - A Petrochemical company formed by (PIC) and (Dow Chemical) Petroleum Training Centre(PTC) - Responsible for all training and career development within the KPC Companies Kuwait Oil Tanker Company (KOTC) - Crude Oil Shipping Kuwait Aviation Fuelling Company (KAFCO) - Aircraft Fuelling Kuwait Gulf Oil Company (KGOC) -Oil & Oil Development Company (ODC) -Demographics
As of the end of 2005, Kuwait had a total population of 2.992 million people which included 1.999 million non-nationals. Kuwait formerly had a large Palestinian population, though most of them were forced out of the country after PLO leader Yassir Arafat's support of Iraq during the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait.
Infrastructure
Kuwait's infrastructure was severely damaged during the 1st Persian Gulf War. Kuwait Infrastructure Maintenance Management System overlooks the oil-rich country's infrastructure.
Kuwait has also planned one of the biggest sea front projects in the world, Madinat al-Hareer . There is no railway system in Kuwait although public and private bus systems are operated. An international airport is located in the southern outskirts of the Kuwait city metropolitan area and Kuwait Airways is the national airline owned by the government.
Education
Oil revenues have allowed Kuwait to build an extensive educational system, yielding a literacy rate of 90 percent. Kuwait University is Kuwait's only public university, but it is known as a very prestigious institution in the Middle East. Both the extensive library system at Kuwait University and the collection at Kuwait National Museum (1957) were heavily damaged and looted during the Iraqi occupation in the 1991 Persian Gulf War. Gulf University for Science and Technology is the first private university established in Kuwait. Other private universities are the American University of Kuwait and the Australian College of Kuwait.
Mass media
Kuwait has 10 TV channels (4 controlled by the Ministry of Information), 2 modern English FM stations, mostly targeting the Westerners residing in Kuwait (one playing latest Western pop music and hits, while the other one playing Jazz, Blues and other light music), a few Arabic radio stations, 5 daily newspapers published in Arabic, and 3 daily newspapers published in English (Arab Times &
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