Kuwait (GPS: 29 30 N, 45 45 E) located in the Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iraq and Saudi Arabia. The country’s area measurements are total: 17,818 sq km; land: 17,818 sq km, water: 0 sq km. This sovereign state is slightly smaller than New Jersey. The total irrigated land is 105 sq km (2012).
One of the essential features of Kuwait: Strategic location at the head of the Persian Gulf.
It’s significant, and at the same time, the principal city, Kuwait City’s GPS coordinates are 29 22 N 47 58 E. Kuwait City’s local time is 8 hours ahead of Washington DC during Standard Time. The capital’s time difference: UTC+3.
For more information on Kuwait, please scroll down below the Google Maps.
Google Maps Kuwait and Kuwait City, Middle East
About Kuwait in detail
Flag of Kuwait
Map of Kuwait
The AL-SABAH dynasty has ruled Kuwait since the 18th century. The threat of the Ottoman invasion in 1899 prompted Amir Mubarak AL-SABAH to seek protection from Britain, ceding foreign and defense responsibility to Britain until 1961 when the country attained its independence. Kuwait was attacked and overrun by Iraq in August 1990. Following several weeks of aerial bombardment, a US-led UN coalition began a ground assault in February 1991 that liberated Kuwait in four days. In 1992, the Amir reconstituted the parliament that he had dissolved in 1986. Amid the 2010-11 uprisings and protests across the Arab world, stateless Arabs, known as Bidoon, staged small protests in early 2011 demanding citizenship, jobs, and other benefits available to Kuwaiti nationals. Other demographic groups, notably Islamists and Kuwaitis from tribal backgrounds, soon joined the growing protest movements, which culminated in late 2011 with the prime minister’s resignation amidst allegations of corruption. Demonstrations renewed in late 2012 in response to an amiri decree amending the electoral law that lessened the tribal blocs’ voting power.
An opposition coalition of Sunni Islamists, tribal populists, and some liberals largely boycotted legislative elections in 2012 and 2013, which ushered in a legislature more amenable to the government’s plan. Faced with the prospect of painful subsidy cuts, oppositionists and independents actively participated in the November 2016 election, winning nearly half of the seats. Still, a cohesive opposition alliance largely ceased to exist with the 2016 election, and the opposition became increasingly factionalized. Since coming to power in 2006, the Amir has dissolved the National Assembly on seven occasions (the Constitutional Court annulled the Assembly elections in June 2012 and again in June 2013) and shuffled the cabinet over a dozen times, usually citing political stagnation and gridlock between the legislature and the government.
Kuwait’s names conventional long form: the State of Kuwait, traditional short form: Kuwait, local long way: Dawlat al Kuwayt, local short form: Al Kuwayt, etymology: the name derives from the capital city, which is from Arabic “al-Kuwayt” a diminutive of “kut” meaning “fortress encircled by water.” The name derives from the capital city, which is from Arabic “al-Kuwayt,” a diminutive of “kut” meaning “fortress,” possibly a reference to a small castle built on the current location of Kuwait City by the Beni Khaled tribe in the 17th century.
Kuwait’s terrain is typically flat to slightly undulating desert plain. The country’s mean elevation: 108 m, elevation extremes; lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m, highest point: unnamed height 306 m.
The general climate in the country; desert: intensely hot summers: short, cold winters.
The total number of border countries is 2, Iraq 254 km, Saudi Arabia 221 km are the neighboring nations with the indicated border lengths. Kuwait’s coastline is 499 km, while its marital claims are: territorial sea: 12 nautical miles. Waterways: N/A. Land use: agricultural land: 8.5%; arable land 0.6%; permanent crops 0.3%; permanent pasture 7.6%; forest: 0.4%; other: 91.1% (2011 estimate).
The population in Kuwait 2,916,467 (July 2017 estimate) (July 2018 estimate), urban population: 98.3% of total population (2015), major urban area’s population: KUWAIT (capital) 2.779 million (2015), while Kuwait has the densest settlement is along the Persian Gulf, particularly in Kuwait City and on Bubiyan Island; significant population threads extend south and west along highways that radiate from the capital, particularly in the southern half of the country. Their spoken languages are: Arabic (official language), English widely is spoken. Main religions in Kuwait are Muslim (official) 76.7%, Christian 17.3%, other and unspecified 5.9%note: represents the total population; about 69% of the population consists of immigrants (2013 estimate). The nation uses mixed legal system consisting of English common law, French civil law, and Islamic religious law. It is a(n) constitutional monarchy, National holiday(s) National Day, 25 February (1950).
Economic overview for the country: Kuwait has a geographically small but wealthy, relatively open economy with crude oil reserves of about 102 billion barrels – more than 6% of world reserves. Kuwaiti officials plan to increase production to 4 million barrels of oil equivalent per day by 2020. Petroleum accounts for over half of GDP, 92% of export revenues, and 90% government income. With world oil prices declining, Kuwait realized a budget deficit in 2015 for the first time in more than a decade; In 2016, the deficit grew to 16.5% of GDP. Kuwaiti authorities announced cuts to fuel subsidies in August 2016, provoking outrage among the public and National Assembly, and the Amir dissolved the government for the seventh time in ten years.
In 2017 the deficit was reduced to 7.2% of GDP, and the government raised $8 billion by issuing international bonds. Despite Kuwait’s dependence on oil, the government has cushioned itself against the impact of lower oil prices, by saving annually at least 10% of government revenue in the Fund for Future Generations. Kuwait has failed to diversify its economy or bolster the private sector, because of a poor business climate, a large public sector that employs about 74% of citizens, and an acrimonious relationship between the National Assembly and the executive branch that has stymied most economic reforms.
The Kuwaiti Government has made little progress on its long-term economic development plan first passed in 2010. While the government planned to spend up to $104 billion over four years to diversify the economy, attract more investment, and boost private sector participation in the economy, many of the projects did not materialize because of an uncertain political situation or delays in awarding contracts. To increase non-oil revenues, the Kuwaiti Government in August 2017 approved draft bills supporting a Gulf Cooperation Council-wide value-added tax scheduled to take effect in 2018.
Natural resources of Kuwait: petroleum, fish, shrimp, natural gas.
Main export partners for Kuwait, Middle East are South Korea 14.5%, China 12.1%, India 12.1%, Japan 10.4%, US 7.6%, Pakistan 5.9%, Singapore 4.3% (2015) for oil and refined products, fertilizers, while the main import partners for the country are: China 13.2%, US 9.6%, Saudi Arabia 7.7%, Japan 6.5%, Germany 5.1%, France 4.3%, India 4.2% (2015) for food, construction materials, vehicles and parts, clothing.
When you visit this country in Middle East, consider the natural hazards in Kuwait: Sudden cloudbursts are common from October to April and bring heavy rain, which can damage roads and houses, sandstorms and dust storms occur throughout the year but are most common between March and August, while infectious diseases are N/A. Also, note that Kuwait faces the following environmental issues: Limited natural freshwater resources, Some of world’s largest and most sophisticated desalination facilities provide much of the water, Air and water pollution, Desertification, Loss of biodiversity.
You may also be interested in Kuwait’s surrounding countries around its total 475 km border, like Iraq, Saudi Arabia.
