214 lines
17 KiB
Plaintext
214 lines
17 KiB
Plaintext
QATAR
|
||
GEOGRAPHY
|
||
Total area: 11,000 km2; land area: 11,000 km2
|
||
|
||
Comparative area: slightly smaller than Connecticut
|
||
|
||
Land boundaries: 60 km total; Saudi Arabia 40 km, UAE 20 km
|
||
|
||
Coastline: 563 km
|
||
|
||
Maritime claims:
|
||
|
||
Continental shelf: not specific;
|
||
|
||
Territorial sea: 3 nm
|
||
|
||
Disputes: boundary with UAE is in dispute; territorial dispute with
|
||
Bahrain over the Hawar Islands
|
||
|
||
Climate: desert; hot, dry; humid and sultry in summer
|
||
|
||
Terrain: mostly flat and barren desert covered with loose sand and
|
||
gravel
|
||
|
||
Natural resources: crude oil, natural gas, fish
|
||
|
||
Land use: arable land NEGL%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and
|
||
pastures 5%; forest and woodland 0%; other 95%
|
||
|
||
Environment: haze, duststorms, sandstorms common; limited
|
||
freshwater resources mean increasing dependence on large-scale
|
||
desalination facilities
|
||
|
||
Note: strategic location in central Persian Gulf near
|
||
major crude oil sources
|
||
|
||
PEOPLE
|
||
Population: 518,478 (July 1991), growth rate 5.3% (1991)
|
||
|
||
Birth rate: 21 births/1,000 population (1991)
|
||
|
||
Death rate: 3 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
|
||
|
||
Net migration rate: 35 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
|
||
|
||
Infant mortality rate: 24 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
|
||
|
||
Life expectancy at birth: 69 years male, 74 years female (1991)
|
||
|
||
Total fertility rate: 4.0 children born/woman (1991)
|
||
|
||
Nationality: noun--Qatari(s); adjective--Qatari
|
||
|
||
Ethnic divisions: Arab 40%, Pakistani 18%, Indian 18%, Iranian 10%,
|
||
other 14%
|
||
|
||
Religion: Muslim 95%
|
||
|
||
Language: Arabic (official); English is commonly used as second
|
||
language
|
||
|
||
Literacy: 76% (male 77%, female 72%) age 15 and over can
|
||
read and write (1986)
|
||
|
||
Labor force: 104,000; 85% non-Qatari in private sector (1983)
|
||
|
||
Organized labor: trade unions are illegal
|
||
|
||
GOVERNMENT
|
||
Long-form name: State of Qatar
|
||
|
||
Type: traditional monarchy
|
||
|
||
Capital: Doha
|
||
|
||
Administrative divisions: none
|
||
|
||
Independence: 3 September 1971 (from UK)
|
||
|
||
Constitution: provisional constitution enacted 2 April 1970
|
||
|
||
Legal system: discretionary system of law controlled by the amir,
|
||
although civil codes are being implemented; Islamic law is significant in
|
||
personal matters
|
||
|
||
National holiday: Independence Day, 3 September (1971)
|
||
|
||
Executive branch: amir, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
|
||
|
||
Legislative branch: unicameral Advisory Council (Majlis al-Shura)
|
||
|
||
Judicial branch: Court of Appeal
|
||
|
||
Leaders:
|
||
|
||
Chief of State and Head of Government--Amir and Prime Minister
|
||
Khalifa bin Hamad Al THANI (since 22 February 1972); Heir Apparent Hamad
|
||
bin Khalifa AL THANI (appointed 31 May 1977; son of Amir)
|
||
|
||
Political parties and leaders: none
|
||
|
||
Suffrage: none
|
||
|
||
Elections:
|
||
|
||
Advisory Council--constitution calls for elections for part
|
||
of this consultative body, but no elections have been held;
|
||
seats--(30 total)
|
||
|
||
Member of: ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA,
|
||
IBRD, ICAO, IDB, IFAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC,
|
||
ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU,
|
||
WHO, WIPO, WMO
|
||
|
||
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Hamad Abd al-Aziz
|
||
AL-KAWARI, Chancery at Suite 1180, 600 New Hampshire Avenue NW,
|
||
Washington DC 20037; telephone (202) 338-0111;
|
||
|
||
US--Ambassador Mark G. HAMBLEY; Embassy at 149 Ali Bin Ahmed St.,
|
||
Farig Bin Omran (opposite the television station), Doha (mailing address
|
||
is P. O. Box 2399, Doha); telephone 0974 864701 through 864703
|
||
|
||
Flag: maroon with a broad white serrated band (nine white points)
|
||
on the hoist side
|
||
|
||
ECONOMY
|
||
Overview: Oil is the backbone of the economy and accounts for more
|
||
than 85% of export earnings and roughly 75% of government revenues.
|
||
Proved oil reserves of 3.3 billion barrels should ensure continued output
|
||
at current levels for about 25 years. Oil has given Qatar a per capita
|
||
GDP of about $12,500, among the highest in the world outside the OECD
|
||
countries.
|
||
|
||
GDP: $6.6 billion, per capita $12,500 (1989 est.); real growth
|
||
rate 5.0% (1988)
|
||
|
||
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.9% (1988 est.)
|
||
|
||
Unemployment rate: NA%
|
||
|
||
Budget: revenues $1.8 billion; expenditures $3.4 billion, including
|
||
capital expenditures of $400 million (FY89 est.)
|
||
|
||
Exports: $2.6 billion (f.o.b., 1989 est.);
|
||
|
||
commodities--petroleum products 85%, steel, fertilizers;
|
||
|
||
partners--Japan, Italy, Thailand, Singapore
|
||
|
||
Imports: $1.4 billion (c.i.f., 1989 est.), excluding military
|
||
equipment;
|
||
|
||
commodities--foodstuffs, beverages, animal and vegetable oils,
|
||
chemicals, machinery and equipment;
|
||
|
||
partners--Japan, UK, US, Italy
|
||
|
||
External debt: $1.1 billion (December 1989 est.)
|
||
|
||
Industrial production: growth rate 0.6% (1987); accounts
|
||
for 64% of GDP, including oil
|
||
|
||
Electricity: 1,514,000 kW capacity; 4,000 million kWh produced,
|
||
8,540 kWh per capita (1989)
|
||
|
||
Industries: crude oil production and refining, fertilizers,
|
||
petrochemicals, steel, cement
|
||
|
||
Agriculture: farming and grazing on small scale, less than 2% of
|
||
GDP; commercial fishing increasing in importance; most food imported
|
||
|
||
Economic aid: donor--pledged $2.7 billion in ODA to less developed
|
||
countries (1979-88)
|
||
|
||
Currency: Qatari riyal (plural--riyals); 1 Qatari riyal (QR) = 100
|
||
dirhams
|
||
|
||
Exchange rates: Qatari riyals (QR) per US$1--3.6400 riyals (fixed
|
||
rate)
|
||
Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March
|
||
|
||
COMMUNICATIONS
|
||
Highways: 1,500 km total; 1,000 km bituminous, 500 km gravel or
|
||
natural surface (est.)
|
||
|
||
Pipelines: crude oil, 235 km; natural gas, 400 km
|
||
|
||
Ports: Doha, Umm Said, Halul Island
|
||
|
||
Merchant marine: 20 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 465,371
|
||
GRT/707,089 DWT; includes 12 cargo, 5 container, 3 petroleum, oils, and
|
||
lubricants (POL) tanker
|
||
|
||
Civil air: 3 major transport aircraft
|
||
|
||
Airports: 4 total, 4 usable; 1 with permanent-surface runways;
|
||
1 with runways over 3,659 m; none with runways 2,440-3,659 m;
|
||
2 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
|
||
|
||
Telecommunications: modern system centered in Doha; 110,000
|
||
telephones; tropospheric scatter to Bahrain; radio relay to Saudi Arabia;
|
||
submarine cable to Bahrain and UAE; stations--2 AM, 1 FM, 3 TV;
|
||
earth stations--1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT,
|
||
1 ARABSAT
|
||
|
||
DEFENSE FORCES
|
||
Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Police Department
|
||
|
||
Manpower availability: males 15-49, 235,516; 125,591 fit for
|
||
military service; 4,243 reach military age (18) annually
|
||
|
||
Defense expenditures: $500 million, 8% of GDP (1989)
|
||
|
||
|