- Welcome to the Royal Saudi Embassy in Singapore -

INTRODUCING SAUDI ARABIA

BACKGROUND
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In 1902 Abdul al-Aziz Ibn SAUD captured Riyadh and set out on a 30-year campaign to unify the Arabian peninsula. In the 1930s, the discovery of oil transformed the country. Following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, Saudi Arabia accepted the Kuwaiti royal family and 400,000 refugees while allowing Western and Arab troops to deploy on its soil for the liberation of Kuwait the following year. A burgeoning population, aquifer depletion, and an economy largely dependent on petroleum output and prices are all major governmental concerns.

CLICK TO HEAR THE NATIONAL ANTHEM OF SAUDI ARABIA.

GEOGRAPHY FACTFILE
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	Location
	• Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea, north of Yemen
	Geographic Coordinates
	• 25 00 N, 45 00 E
	Map References:
	• Middle East
	Area
	• Total - 1,960,582 sq km • Land - 1,960,582 sq km • Water - 0 sq km
	Area - Comparative:
	• Slightly more than one-fifth the size of the US
	Land Boundaries
	• Total - 4,415 km
	Border Countries
	• Iraq 814 km • Jordan 728 km • Kuwait 222 km • Oman 676 km • Qatar 60 km • UAE 457 km • Yemen 1,458 km
	Coastline
	• Total - 2,640 km
	Maritime Claims
	• Contiguous zone - 18 NM • Continental shelf - not specified • Territorial sea - 12 NM
	Climate
	• Harsh, dry desert with great extremes of temperature
	Terrain:
	• Mostly uninhabited, sandy desert
	Elevation Extremes
	• Lowest point - Persian Gulf 0 m • Highest point - Jabal Sawda' 3,133 m
	Natural Resources
	• Petroleum • Natural gas • Iron ore • Gold • Copper
	Land Use
	• Arable land - 2% • Permanent crops - 0% • Permanent pastures - 56% • Forests and woodland - 1% • Other - 41% (1993 est.)
	Irrigated Land
	• 4,350 sq km (1993 est.)
	Natural Hazards
	• Frequent sand and dust storms
	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
	Environment - International Agreements
	• Climate Change • Desertification • Endangered Species • Hazardous Wastes • Law of the Sea • Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
	Geography - Note
	• Extensive coastlines on Persian Gulf and Red Sea provide great leverage on shipping (especially crude oil) through Persian Gulf and Suez Canal

PEOPLE
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	Population
	• 22,757,092 NOTE: includes 5,360,526 non-nationals (July 2001 est.)
	Age Structure
	• 0-14 years - 42.52% (male 4,932,465; female 4,743,908) • 15-64 years -54.8% (male 7,290,840; female 5,179,393) • 65 years and over -2.68% (male 334,981; female 275,505) (2001 est.)
	Population Growth Rate
	• 3.27% (2001 est.)
	Birth Rate
	• 37.34 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)
	Death Rate
	• 5.94 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)
	Net migration Rate
	• 1.32 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
	Sex Ratio
	• At birth - 1.05 male(s)/female • Under 15 years - 1.04 male(s)/female • 15-64 years - 1.41 male(s)/female • 65 years and over - 1.22 male(s)/female • Total population - 1.23 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
	Infant Mortality Rate
	• 51.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)
	Life Expectancy At Birth
	• Total population - 68.09 years • Male - 66.4 years • Female - 69.85 years (2001 est.)
	Total Fertility Rate
	• 6.25 children born/woman (2001 est.)
	HIV/AIDS - Adult Prevalence Rate
	• 0.01% (1999 est.)
	HIV/AIDS -People Living With HIV/AIDS
	• NA
	HIV/AIDS - Deaths
	• NA
	Nationality
	• Noun - Saudi(s) • Adjective - Saudi or Saudi Arabian
	Ethnic Groups
	• Arab - 90% • Afro-Asian - 10%
	Religions
	• Muslim - 100%
	Languages
	• Arabic
	Literacy
	• Definition - Age 15 and over can read and write • Total population - 62.8% • Male - 71.5% • Female - 50.2% (1995 est.)

GOVERNMENT
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Country Name

• 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

Government Type

• Monarchy

Capital

• Riyadh

Administrative Divisions

13 provinces (mintaqat, singular - mintaqah);
• Al Bahah
• Al Hudud ash Shamaliyah
• Al Jawf
• Al Madinah
• Al Qasim
• Ar Riyad
• Ash Sharqiyah (Eastern Province)
• 'Asir
• Ha'il
• Jizan
• Makkah
• Najran
• Tabuk

Independence

• 23 September 1932 (Unification of the Kingdom)

National Holiday

• Unification of the Kingdom, 23 September (1932)

Constitution

• Governed according to Shari'a (Islamic law); the Basic Law that articulates the government's rights and responsibilities was introduced in 1993

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

King Abdullah
Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud
The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques

• H.R.H. Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud
The Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation & Inspector General

NOTE:
The monarch is both the chief of state and head of government

• Head of Government:
King and Prime Minister Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud;

• HRH Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud
The Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation & Inspector General

NOTE:
The monarch is both the chief of state and head of government

• Cabinet
Council of Ministers is appointed by the monarch and includes many royal family members elections: none; the monarch is hereditary

Legislative Branch

• A consultative council (90 members and a chairman appointed by the monarch for four-year terms)

Judicial Branch

• Supreme Council of Justice

Political Parties and Leaders

• None allowed

Political Pressure Groups and Leaders

• None

International Organization Participation

• ABEDA	• IDA	• OAS
• AfDB	• IDB	(observer)
• AFESD	• IFAD	• OIC
• AL	• IFC	• OPCW
• AMF	• IFRCS	• OPEC
• BIS	• ILO	• UN
• CCC	• IMF	• UNCTAD
• ESCWA	• IMO	• UNESCO
• FAO	• Inmarsat	• UNIDO
• G-19	• Intelsat	• UPU
• G-77	• Interpol	• WFTU
• GCC	• IOC	• WHO
• IAEA	• ISO	• WIPO
• IBRD	• ITU	• WMO
• ICAO	• NAM	• WTrO
• ICC	• OAPEC	(observer)
• ICRM

Diplomatic Representation in Singapore

Chief of mission - Ambassador Dr Mohammad Amin Kurdi
Chancery - 20, Swiss Clup Road Singapore 288114
Telephone - [65] 6768 7955

Diplomatic Representation from Singapore

Chief of mission - Mr Anthony Chng Chey Tong. Charge d'Affaires a.i.
Embassy - Albaha Street, Oleya District
Mailing address - Singaporean Embassy Riyadh 11693
Telephone - [966] (1) 488-3800
Fax - [966] (1) 465-2224
C onsulate(s) General - Jiddah (Jeddah)

Flag Description

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

COMMUNICATIONS
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Telephones - Main lines in use

3.1 million (1998)

Telephones - Mobile cellular

		TOTAL - 1 million NOTE: in 1998, the government contracted for the installation of 575,000 additional Group Speciale Mobile (GSM) cellular telephone lines over 15 months to raise the totalnumber of subscribers to more than one million;
Riyadh planned to further expand the GSM system in 1999 by adding an additional one million lines (1998)

Telephone System

• General Assessment - Modern system

• Domestic - Extensive microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, and fiber-optic cable systems

• International - 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; satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (3 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Arabsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region)

Radio Broadcast Stations

• AM 43, FM 31, shortwave 2 (1998)

Radios

• 6.25 million (1997)

Television Broadcast Stations

• 117 (1997)

Televisions

• 5.1 million (1997)

Internet Country Code

• .sa

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

• 42 (2001)

Internet Users

• 400,000 (2001)

TRANSPORTATION
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	Railways
	TOTAL - 1,390 km Standard gauge: 1,390 km 1.435-m gauge (448 km double-track) (1992)
	Highways
	TOTAL - 146,524 km • Paved - 44,104 km • Unpaved - 102,420 km (1997 est.)
	Waterways
	• None
	Pipelines
	• Crude oil 6,400 km • Petroleum products 150 km • Natural gas 2,200 km (includes natural gas liquids 1,600 km)
	Ports and harbors
	• Ad Dammam • Al Jubayl • Duba • Jiddah • Jizan • Rabigh • Ra's al Khafji • Mishab • Ras Tanura • Yanbu' al Bahr • Madinat Yanbu' al Sinaiyah
	Merchant marine
	TOTAL - 71 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,154,619 GRT/1,533,732 DWT Ships by Type: • Cargo: 11 • Chemical tanker: 8 • Container: 5 • Liquefied gas: 1 • Livestock carrier: 3 • Passenger: 1 • Petroleum tanker: 18 • Refrigerated cargo: 3 • Roll on/roll off: 13 • Short-sea passenger: 8 (2000 est.)
	Airports
	• 206 (2000 est.)
	Airports - With Paved Runways
	TOTAL: 70 • Over 3,047 m - 31 • 2,438 to 3,047 m - 11 • 1,524 to 2,437 m - 23 • 914 to 1,523 m - 3 • Under 914 m - 2 (2000 est.)
	Airports - with unpaved runways
	TOTAL: 136 • 2,438 to 3,047 m - 5 • 1,524 to 2,437 m - 77 • 914 to 1,523 m - 39 • Under 914 m - 15 (2000 est.)
	Heliports
	• 5 (2000 est.)

MILITARY
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	MilitaryBranches
	• Land Force (Army) • Navy • Air Force • Air Defense Force • National Guard • Ministry of Interior Forces (paramilitary)
	Military Manpower - Military Age
	• 17 years of age
	Military Manpower - Availability
	• Males age 15 to 49 - 5,894,691 (2001 est.)
	Military manpower - fit for military service
	• Males age 15 to 49 - 3,291,185 (2001 est.)
	Military manpower - reaching military age annually
	• Males - 233,402 (2001 est.)
	Military expenditures - dollar figure
	• $18.3 billion (FY00)
	Military expenditures - percent of GDP
	• 13% (FY00)

TRANSPORTATION
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	Disputes - International
	• A final border resolution was agreed to with Qatar in March of 2001; location and status of boundary with UAE is not final, de facto boundary reflects a 1974 agreement; a June 2000 treaty delimited the boundary with Yemen, but final demarcation requires adjustments based on tribal considerations
	Illicit drugs
	• Death penalty for traffickers; increasing consumption of heroin and cocaine

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PRINTER FRIENDLY

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