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Background:
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In 1783, the al-Khalifa family captured Bahrain from the Persians. In order to secure these holdings, it entered into a series of treaties with the UK during the 19th century that made Bahrain a British protectorate. The archipelago attained its independence in 1971. Bahrain's small size and central location among Persian Gulf countries require it to play a delicate balancing act in foreign affairs among its larger neighbors. Facing declining oil reserves, Bahrain has turned to petroleum processing and refining and has transformed itself into an international banking center. King HAMAD bin Isa al-Khalifa, after coming to power in 1999, pushed economic and political reforms to improve relations with the Shi'a community and Shi'a political societies participated in 2006 parliamentary and municipal elections. Al Wifaq, the largest Shi'a political society, won the largest number of seats in the elected chamber of the legislature. However, Shi'a discontent has resurfaced in recent years with street demonstrations and occasional low-level violence.
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Location:
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Middle East, archipelago in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia
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Geographic coordinates:
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26 00 N, 50 33 E
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Map references:
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Area:
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total: 665 sq km
land: 665 sq km
water: 0 sq km
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Area - comparative:
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3.5 times the size of Washington, DC
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Land boundaries:
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0 km
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Coastline:
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161 km
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Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: extending to boundaries to be determined
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Climate:
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arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers
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Terrain:
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mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central escarpment
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Jabal ad Dukhan 122 m
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Natural resources:
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oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls
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Land use:
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arable land: 2.82%
permanent crops: 5.63%
other: 91.55% (2005)
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Irrigated land:
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40 sq km (2003)
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Total renewable water resources:
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0.1 cu km (1997)
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Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
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Total: 0.3 cu km/yr (40%/3%/57%)
Per capita: 411 cu m/yr (2000)
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Natural hazards:
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periodic droughts; dust storms
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Environment - current issues:
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desertification resulting from the degradation of limited arable land, periods of drought, and dust storms; coastal degradation (damage to coastlines, coral reefs, and sea vegetation) resulting from oil spills and other discharges from large tankers, oil refineries, and distribution stations; lack of freshwater resources, groundwater and seawater are the only sources for all water needs
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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Geography - note:
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close to primary Middle Eastern petroleum sources; strategic location in Persian Gulf, through which much of the Western world's petroleum must transit to reach open ocean
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Population:
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708,573
note: includes 235,108 non-nationals (July 2007 est.)
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 26.9% (male 96,217/female 94,275)
15-64 years: 69.5% (male 284,662/female 207,555)
65 years and over: 3.7% (male 13,451/female 12,413) (2007 est.)
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Median age:
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total: 29.7 years
male: 32.7 years
female: 26.1 years (2007 est.)
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Population growth rate:
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1.392% (2007 est.)
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Birth rate:
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17.53 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
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Death rate:
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4.21 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
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Net migration rate:
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0.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.021 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.372 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.084 male(s)/female
total population: 1.255 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total: 16.18 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 18.89 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 13.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 74.68 years
male: 72.18 years
female: 77.25 years (2007 est.)
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Total fertility rate:
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2.57 children born/woman (2007 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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0.2% (2001 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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less than 600 (2003 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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less than 200 (2003 est.)
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Nationality:
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noun: Bahraini(s)
adjective: Bahraini
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Ethnic groups:
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Bahraini 62.4%, non-Bahraini 37.6% (2001 census)
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Religions:
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Muslim (Shi'a and Sunni) 81.2%, Christian 9%, other 9.8% (2001 census)
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Languages:
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Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 86.5%
male: 88.6%
female: 83.6% (2001 census)
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This page was last updated on 24 January, 2008
- The Central Intelligence Agency's World Factbook - |
