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Population
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Total population (millions): |
2.5
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| Source : World Bank - World Development Indicators |
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| Urban population:
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96%
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| Source : World Bank - World Development Indicators |
| Average annual population growth:
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2.6%
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| Source : World Bank - World Development Indicators |
| Surface area (km²) : |
17,820
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Population origin
| Origin of the population | % Of the population | | Koweit | 45 | | Other Arabian | 35 | | Asian (South) | 8.9 | | Iranian | 3.8 | | Other | 7.6 |
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| Main Cities |
Population |
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Qalib Ash Shuyukh |
179 264 |
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As Salimiyah |
145 328 |
|
Hawalli |
106 992 |
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Janub Khitan |
92 646 |
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Al Farwaniyah |
83 544 |
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Local time
| It is |
%T:%M %A |
in Kuwaït City (GMT+3 ).
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Languages
Official language: Arabic.
English is considered as the second language, and it is used for business.
Free translation tools
Arjeeb
Free English-Arabic-English translation of texts and web pages
Ectaco
Free Arabic-English-Arabic dictionary
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Religion
Religious practises :
Sunni Muslims 45%
Shiite Muslims 29%
Christians 8%
Hinduists 2%
Others 16%.
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Political context
Kuwait (official name: State of Kuwait) is a constitutional hereditary emirate and has the oldest directly elected parliament among the Persian Gulf Arab countries.
The chief of state is E mir, a hereditary title. Emir has the absolute executive powers including dissolving parliament, promulgating laws, referring bills back to the parliament for reconsideration, and appointing military officers. Emir appoints the Prime Minister as head of the government for any period of time he wishes. Council of Ministers is appointed by the Prime Minister, approved by Emir. Emir has the power to dissolve parliament but must call elections within 60 days.
The legislature in Kuwait is unicameral. The parliament called National Assembly has 50 members which are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms. The parliament has the power to dismiss the Prime Minister or anyone of his cabinet members through a series of constitutional procedures. The people of Kuwait enjoy limited political rights.
Kuwait lacks a truly independent judiciary. The emir appoints all judges and the executive branch of government approves judicial promotions and renewals of judicial appointments. The main source of the law in the country is the constitution of 1962. The legal system is based on civil law system with Islamic law dealing in personal matters. Kuwait has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction. The judicial language in the country is Arabic; an interpreter can be made available.
Kuwait is ruled by law. The country's judiciary does not always guarantee a fair trial to a foreign national. A certain degree of corruption exists in the country, especially in politics.
Major political parties
Formation of political parties is banned in the country, but political groupings like parliamentary blocs have been allowed to emerge.
Major political leaders
Emir: Sheikh SABAH al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah (since January 2006)
Prime Minister: Sheikh NASIR al-Muhammad al-Ahmad al-Sabah (since February 2006)
Next political election dates
National Assembly: Year 2010
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| Number of visitors
in Kuwait
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2004
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2005
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2006
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World rank |
| Number of visitors (1000) |
91 |
.. |
.. |
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| Source : World Tourisme Organization, data available in November 2005 |
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Tourist sites
Koweit city is modern (the biggest towers are Kuwait Towers). You can visit:
-The National Museum: located in the Arabian Gulf Street, the museum is composed of four buildings plus one planetarium. Looted and burned during the Iraqi invasion, the museum lost its magnificence and particularly the richness of its collection, which was one of the most representative of the Arabic world, but still, it is still worth visiting.
-Sadu House: built around 1840, this house is not only a permanent exhibition of the traditional bedouin weaving, but also a way of preserving this ancient know-how. The building in itself is worth the glance since it is a perfect example of the pre-oil producing era type of construction.
-Tareq Rajab museum: the museum houses a great collection of ceramic and metal objects, manuscripts, textiles, traditional costumes as well as the oldest collection of silver jewels publicly exhibited in the Arabic and Islamic world.
- Ramparts and city gates: the ramparts were built in 1922 by the Sheik Salim al-Mubarak in order to keep the nomad tribes outside the city. Although severely damaged in the 1950's, parts of the ramparts and doors remain strewed through the city, notably around First Ring Road.
For more information about tourism
in Kuwait
, check out the following web site(s) :
Information portal on tourism in Kuwait
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