Saudi Arabia

Geography

Location: Middle East, between the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf

Map references: Africa, Middle East, Standard Time Zones of the World

Area:
total area 1,960,582 sq km
land area 1,960,582 sq km
comparative area slightly less than one-fourth the size of the US

Land boundaries: total 4,415 km, Iraq 814 km, Jordan 728 km, Kuwait 222 km, Oman 676 km, Qatar 60 km, UAE 457 km, Yemen 1,458 km

Coastline: 2,640 km

Maritime claims:
contiguous zone 18 nm
continental shelf not specified
territorial sea 12 nm

International disputes: large section of boundary with Yemen not defined; status of boundary with UAE not final; Kuwaiti ownership of Qaruh and Umm al Maradim islands is disputed by Saudi Arabia

Climate: harsh, dry desert with great extremes of temperature

Terrain: mostly uninhabited, sandy desert

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, copper

Land use:
arable land 1%
permanent crops 0%
meadows and pastures 39%
forest and woodland 1%
other 59%

Irrigated land: 4,350 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment:
current issues desertification; depletion of underground water resources; the lack of perennial rivers or permanent water bodies has prompted the development of extensive seawater desalination facilities; coastal pollution from oil spills
natural hazards frequent sand and dust storms
international agreements party to - Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection; signed, but not ratified - Law of the Sea

Note: extensive coastlines on Persian Gulf and Red Sea provide great leverage on shipping (especially crude oil) through Persian Gulf and Suez Canal

People

Population: 18,196,783 (July 1994 est.)
note the population figure is consistent with a 3.24% growth rate; a 1992 census gives the number of Saudi citizens as 12,304,835 and the number of residents who are not citizens as 4,624,459

Population growth rate: 3.24% (1994 est.)

Birth rate: 38.25 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)

Death rate: 5.83 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 52.1 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population 67.91 years
male 66.25 years
female 69.65 years (1994 est.)

Total fertility rate: 6.67 children born/woman (1994 est.)

Nationality:
noun Saudi(s)
adjective Saudi or Saudi Arabian

Ethnic divisions: Arab 90%, Afro-Asian 10%

Religions: Muslim 100%

Languages: Arabic

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population 62%
male 73%
female 48%

Labor force: 5 million-6 million
by occupation government 34%, industry and oil 28%, services 22%, agriculture 16%

Government

Names:
conventional long form Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
conventional short form Saudi Arabia
local long form Al Mamlakah al Arabiyah as Suudiyah
local short form Al Arabiyah as Suudiyah

Digraph: SA

Type: monarchy

Capital: Riyadh

Administrative divisions: 14 emirates (imarat, singular - imarah); Al Bahah, Al Hudud ash Shamaliyah, Al Jawf, Al Madinah, Al Qasim, Al Qurayyat, Ar Riyad, Ash Sharqiyah, Asir, Hail, Jizan, Makkah, Najran, Tabuk

Independence: 23 September 1932 (unification)

National holiday: Unification of the Kingdom, 23 September (1932)

Constitution: none; governed according to Shari'a (Islamic law)

Legal system: based on Islamic law, several secular codes have been introduced; commercial disputes handled by special committees; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: none

Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government King and Prime Minister FAHD bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud (since 13 June 1982); Crown Prince and First Deputy Prime Minister ABDALLAH bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud (half-brother to the King, appointed heir to the throne 13 June 1982)
cabinet Council of Ministers; mostly made up of the royal family appointed by the king

Legislative branch: a consultative council comprised of 60 members and a chairman who are appointed by the King for a term of four years

Judicial branch: Supreme Council of Justice

Political parties and leaders: none allowed

Member of: ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-19, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOSOM, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO

Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission Ambassador BANDAR bin Sultan Abd al-Aziz Al Saud
chancery 601 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037
telephone (202) 342-3800
consulate(s) general Houston, Los Angeles, and New York

US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission (vacant); Charge d'Affaires C. David Welch
embassy Collector Road M, Diplomatic Quarter, Riyadh
mailing address American Embassy, Unit 61307, Riyadh; International Mail: P. O. Box 94309, Riyadh 11693; or APO AE 09803-1307
telephone [966] (1) 488-3800
FAX [966] (1) 482-4364
consulate(s) general Dhahran, Jiddah (Jeddah)

Flag: green with large white Arabic script (that may be translated as There is no God but God; Muhammad is the Messenger of God) above a white horizontal saber (the tip points to the hoist side); green is the traditional color of Islam

Economy

Overview: The petroleum sector accounts for roughly 75% of budget revenues, 35% of GDP, and almost all export earnings. Saudi Arabia has the largest reserves of petroleum in the world, ranks as the largest exporter of petroleum, and plays a leading role in OPEC. For the 1990s the government intends to bring its budget, which has been in deficit since 1983, back into balance, and to encourage private economic activity. Roughly four million foreign workers play an important role in the Saudi economy, for example, in the oil and banking sectors. For about a decade, Saudi Arabia's domestic and international outlays have outstripped its income, and the government has cut its foreign assistance and is beginning to rein in domestic programs.

National product: GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $194 billion (1993 est.)

National product real growth rate: 1% (1993 est.)

National product per capita: $11,000 (1993 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1% (1993 est.)

Unemployment rate: 6.5% (1992 est.)

Budget:
revenues $39 billion
expenditures $50 billion, including capital expenditures of $7.5 billion (1993 est.)

Exports: $42.3 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities petroleum and petroleum products 92%
partners US 21%, Japan 18%, Singapore 6%, France 6%, Korea 5%

Imports: $26 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, motor vehicles, textiles
partners US 18%, UK 12%, Japan 10%, Germany 5%, France 5%

External debt: $18.9 billion (December 1989 est., includes short-term trade credits)

Industrial production: growth rate 20% (1991 est.); accounts for 46% of GDP, including petroleum

Electricity:
capacity 28,554,000 kW
production 63 billion kWh
consumption per capita 3,690 kWh (1992)

Industries: crude oil production, petroleum refining, basic petrochemicals, cement, two small steel-rolling mills, construction, fertilizer, plastics

Agriculture: accounts for about 10% of GDP, 16% of labor force; subsidized by government; products - wheat, barley, tomatoes, melons, dates, citrus fruit, mutton, chickens, eggs, milk; approaching self-sufficiency in food

Illicit drugs: death penalty for traffickers; increasing consumption of heroin and cocaine

Economic aid:
donor pledged bilateral aid (1979-89), $64.7 billion; pledged $100 million in 1993 to fund reconstruction of Lebanon

Currency: 1 Saudi riyal (SR) = 100 halalah

Exchange rates: Saudi riyals (SR) per US$1 - 3.7450 (fixed rate since late 1986), 3.7033 (1986)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Communications

Railroads: 1390 km 1.435-meter standard gauge; 448 km are double tracked

Highways:
total 74,000 km
paved 35,000 km
unpaved gravel, improved earth 39,000 km

Pipelines: crude oil 6,400 km; petroleum products 150 km; natural gas 2,200 km (includes natural gas liquids 1,600 km)

Ports: Jiddah, Ad Dammam, Ras Tanura, Jizan, Al Jubayl, Yanbu' al Bahr, Yanbu' al Sinaiyah

Merchant marine: 74 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 865,343 GRT/1,240,874 DWT, bulk 1, cargo 11, chemical tanker 4, container 3, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 5, oil tanker 23, passenger 1, refrigerated cargo 6, roll-on/roll-off cargo 11, short-sea passenger 7, specialized tanker 1

Airports:
total 215
usable 195
with permanent-surface runways 71
with runways over 3,659 m 14
with runways 2,440-3,659 m 38
with runways 1,220-2,439 m 105

Telecommunications: modern system with extensive microwave and coaxial and fiber optic cable systems; 1,624,000 telephones; broadcast stations - 43 AM, 13 FM, 80 TV; microwave radio relay to Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Yemen, and Sudan; coaxial cable to Kuwait and Jordan; submarine cable to Djibouti, Egypt and Bahrain; earth stations - 3 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 2 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, 1 ARABSAT, 1 INMARSAT

Defense Forces

Branches: Land Force (Army), Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Force, National Guard, Coast Guard, Frontier Forces, Special Security Force, Public Security Force

Manpower availability: males age 15-49 5,682,036; fit for military service 3,140,464; reach military age (17) annually 147,420 (1994 est.)

Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $16.5 billion, 13% of GDP (1993 budget)