Yemen




                                 Geography


Location:
     Middle East, along the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea, south of Saudi
     Arabia
Map references:
     Africa, Middle East, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
     527,970 sq km
land area:
     527,970 sq km
comparative area:
     slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming
note:
     includes Perim, Socotra, the former Yemen Arab Republic (YAR or North
     Yemen), and the former People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY or
     South Yemen)
Land boundaries:
     total 1,746 km, Oman 288 km, Saudi Arabia 1,458 km
Coastline:
     1,906 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
     18 nm in the North; 24 nm in the South
continental shelf:
     200-m depth in the North; 200 nm in the South or to the edge of the
     continental margin
exclusive economic zone:
     200 nm
territorial sea:
     12 nm
International disputes:
     undefined section of boundary with Saudi Arabia; a treaty with Oman
     defining the Yemeni-Omani boundary was ratified in December 1992
Climate:
     mostly desert; hot and humid along west coast; temperate in western
     mountains affected by seasonal monsoon; extraordinarily hot, dry,
     harsh desert in east
Terrain:
     narrow coastal plain backed by flat-topped hills and rugged mountains;
     dissected upland desert plains in center slope into the desert
     interior of the Arabian Peninsula
Natural resources:
     petroleum, fish, rock salt, marble, small deposits of coal, gold,
     lead, nickel, and copper, fertile soil in west
Land use:
arable land:
     6%
permanent crops:
     0%
meadows and pastures:
     30%




forest and woodland:
     7%
other:
     57%
Irrigated land:
     3,100 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
     scarcity of natural freshwater resources (shortages of potable water);
     overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification
natural hazards:
     subject to sandstorms and dust storms in summer
international agreements:
     party to - Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea; signed, but not
     ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change
Note:
     controls Bab el Mandeb, the strait linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of
     Aden, one of world's most active shipping lanes


                                  People


Population:
     11,105,202 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
     3.34% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
     50.72 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
     14.94 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
     -2.44 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
     112.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
     51.47 years
male:
     50.34 years
female:
     52.65 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
     7.2 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
     Yemeni(s)
adjective:
     Yemeni
Ethnic divisions:
     predominantly Arab; Afro-Arab concentrations in coastal locations;
     South Asians in southern regions; small European communities in major
     metropolitan areas; 60,000 (est.) Somali refugees encamped near Aden
Religions:
     Muslim including Sha'fi (Sunni) and Zaydi (Shi'a), Jewish, Christian,
     Hindu




Languages:
     Arabic
Literacy:
     age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population:
     38%
male:
     53%
female:
     26%
Labor force:
     no reliable estimates exist, most people are employed in agriculture
     and herding or as expatriate laborers; services, construction,
     industry, and commerce account for less than half of the labor force


                                Government


Names:
conventional long form:
     Republic of Yemen
conventional short form:
local long form:
     Al Jumhuriyah al Yamaniyah
local short form:
     Al Yaman
Digraph:
     YM
Type:
     republic
Capital:
     Sanaa
Administrative divisions:
     17 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Abyan, Adan, Al
     Bayda, Al Hudaydah, Al Jawf, Al Mahrah, Al Mahwit, Dhamar, Hadramaut,
     Hajjah, Ibb, Lahij, Marib, Sadah, Sana, Shabwah, Taizz
note:
     there may be a new capital district of Sana
Independence:
     22 May 1990 Republic of Yemen was established on 22 May 1990 with the
     merger of the Yemen Arab Republic {Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen} and
     the Marxist-dominated People's Democratic Republic of Yemen {Yemen
     (Aden) or South Yemen}; previously North Yemen had become independent
     on NA November 1918 (from the Ottoman Empire) and South Yemen had
     become independent on 30 November 1967 (from the UK)
National holiday:
     Proclamation of the Republic, 22 May (1990)
Constitution:
     16 May 1991
Legal system:
     based on Islamic law, Turkish law, English common law, and local
     customary law; does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
     18 years of age; universal




Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government:
     President Ali Abdallah SALIH (since 22 May 1990, the former president
     of North Yemen); note - Sanaa dismissed Vice President Ali Salim
     al-BIDH,  Prime Minister Haydar Abu Bakr al-ATTAS (the former
     president of South Yemen), and 14 other southern officials following
     the outbreak of civil war on 4 May 1994
five-member Presidential Council:
     president, vice president, two members from General People's Congress
     party, two members from Yemeni Socialist Party, and one member from
     Yemeni Grouping for Reform, or Islaah party
cabinet:
     Council of Ministers
Legislative branch:
     unicameral
House of Representatives:
     elections last held 27 April 1993 (next to be held NA); results -
     percent of vote NA; seats - (301 total) GPC 124, YSP 55, Islaah 61,
     Ba'thist parties 7, Nasserist parties 4, Hizb al-Haqq 2, Independents
     47, election nullified 1
Judicial branch:
     Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
     Ba'thist parties; General People's Congress (GPC), Ali Abdallah SALIH;
     Hizb al Haqq, Ibrahim al-WAZIR, Sheikh Ahmad ibn Ali SHAMI (Secretary
     General); Nasserist parties; Yemeni Socialist Party (YSP), Ali Salim
     al-BIDH; Yemeni Grouping for Reform or Islaah, Shaykh Abdallah bin
     Husayn al-AHMAR
Other political or pressure groups:
     NA
Member of:
     ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB,
     IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM,
     OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
     Ambassador Muhsin Ahmad AL-AYNI
chancery:
     Suite 705, 2600 Virginia Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037
telephone:
     (202) 965-4760 or 4761
FAX:
     (202) 337-2017
consulate general(s):
     Detroit
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
     Ambassador Arthur H. HUGHES
embassy:
     Dhahr Himyar Zone, Sheraton Hotel District, Sanaa
mailing address:
     P. O. Box 22347 Sanaa or Sanaa, Department of State, Washington, DC
     20521-6330
telephone:
     [967] (1) 238-842 through 238-852




FAX:
     [967] (1) 251-563
Flag:
     three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; similar
     to the flag of Syria which has two green stars and of Iraq which has
     three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line
     centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt which
     has a symbolic eagle centered in the white band


                                  Economy


Overview:
     Whereas the northern city Sanaa is the political capital of a united
     Yemen, the southern city Aden, with its refinery and port facilities,
     is the economic and commercial capital. Future economic development
     depends heavily on Western-assisted development of its moderate oil
     resources. Former South Yemen's willingness to merge stemmed partly
     from the steady decline in Soviet economic support. The low level of
     domestic industry and agriculture have made northern Yemen dependent
     on imports for practically all of its essential needs. Large trade
     deficits have been compensated for by remittances from Yemenis working
     abroad and by foreign aid. Because of the Gulf crisis, remittances
     have dropped substantially. Once self-sufficient in food production,
     northern Yemen has become a major importer. Land once used for export
     crops - cotton, fruit, and vegetables - has been turned over to
     growing a shrub called qat, whose leaves are chewed for their
     stimulant effect by Yemenis and which has no  significant export
     market. Economic growth in former South Yemen has been constrained by
     a lack of incentives, partly stemming from centralized control over
     production decisions, investment allocation, and import choices.
     Nominal growth in 1994-95 is apt to be under 3% annually because of
     low oil prices and political deadlock that is causing a lack of
     economic cooperation and leadership.
National product:
     GDP - exchange rate conversion - $9 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
     3.1% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
     $800 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
     55% (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate:
     30% (December 1992)
Budget:
revenues:
     $NA
expenditures:
     $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Exports:
     $695 million (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
     crude oil, cotton, coffee, hides, vegetables, dried and salted fish
partners:
     Italy 55%, US 32%, Jordan 5% (1991)




Imports:
     $1.6 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
     textiles and other manufactured consumer goods, petroleum products,
     sugar, grain, flour, other foodstuffs, cement, machinery, chemicals
partners:
     UAE 6%, Japan 6%, Saudi Arabia 6%, Kuwait 6%, US 6% (1991)
External debt:
     $7 billion (1993)
Industrial production:
     growth rate NA%, accounts for 18% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
     714,000 kW
production:
     1.224 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
     120 kWh (1992)
Industries:
     crude oil production and petroleum refining; small-scale production of
     cotton textiles and leather goods; food processing; handicrafts; small
     aluminum products factory; cement
Agriculture:
     accounted for 26% of GDP; products - grain, fruits, vegetables, qat
     (mildly narcotic shrub), coffee, cotton, dairy, poultry, meat, fish;
     not self-sufficient in grain
Economic aid:
recipient:
     US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $389 million; Western
     (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $2
     billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $3.2 billion; Communist
     countries (1970-89), $2.4 billion
Currency:
     Yemeni rial (new currency);  1 North Yemeni riyal (YR) = 100 fils; 1
     South Yemeni dinar (YD) = 1,000 fils
note:
     following the establishment of the Republic of Yemen on 22 May 1990,
     the North Yemeni riyal and the South Yemeni dinar are to be replaced
     with a new Yemeni rial
Exchange rates:
     Yemeni rials per US$1 - 12.0 (official); 70 (market rate, April 1994)
Fiscal year:
     calendar year


                              Communications


Highways:
total:
     15,500 km
paved:
     4,000 km
unpaved:
     natural surface 11,500 km
Pipelines:
     crude oil 644 km; petroleum products 32 km




Ports:
     Aden, Al Hudaydah, Al Khalf, Al Mukalla, Mocha, Nishtun, Ra's Kathib,
     Salif
Merchant marine:
     3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,309 GRT/6,568 DWT, cargo 2, oil
     tanker 1
Airports:
total:
     46
usable:
     40
with permanent-surface runways:
     10
with runways over 3,659 m:
     0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
     18
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
     11
Telecommunications:
     since unification in 1990, efforts are still being made to create a
     national domestic civil telecommunications network; the network
     consists of microwave radio relay, cable and troposcatter; 65,000
     telephones (est.); broadcast stations - 4 AM, 1 FM, 10 TV; satellite
     earth stations - 2 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1
     Intersputnik, 2 ARABSAT; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia, and
     Djibouti


                              Defense Forces


Branches:
     Army, Navy, Air Force, Police
Manpower availability:
     males age 15-49 2,142,519; fit for military service 1,219,985; reach
     military age (14) annually 137,497 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
     exchange rate conversion - $762 million, 14% of GDP (1992)