|Form of government
||constitutional hereditary monarchy
|Telephone area code
The Kingdom of Bahrain consists of 33 islands that
lie in the Gulf of Bahrain, a bay of the Persian Gulf.
In the south the bay is surrounded by the Qatar
peninsula, in the west is the mainland of Saudi Arabia.
Only six of the islands are permanently populated, the
main island of Bahrain occupies 80% of the total 695 km²
area. The next largest island is the main island of the
same name of the Hawar Group in the southeast (41 km²),
followed by Umm Nasan (19 km²) in the northwest and Al
Muharrak (17 km²) in the north.
The main island of Bahrain, like most of the islands,
consists of limestone cliffs and is mostly flat. From
the coast, the country rises slightly up to a plateau
that is approximately 30 to 60 m above sea level.
Bahrain's highest peak is Jabal al Bukhan with 135 m. On
the edges of the plateau there are sand dunes, in the
south and southwest of the main island there are wide
areas of sand and salt marshes. Limited agricultural use
is possible due to the presence of springs and artesian
wells on a narrow coastal strip in the north and
northwest of the island.
The capital Manama is located on the main island of
The climate of Bahrain is characterized by hot
summers, warm winters and great drought. The few
rainfall (annual mean of 95 mm) mostly fall in the
months of December to February. Nevertheless, the
average humidity is around 75%. While the temperatures
in the winter months November to April average around 18
กใ C, in summer average values around 33 กใ C and
maximum values up to 45 กใ C are measured. Typical for
the climate of Bahrain is the hot, humid wind from the
northwest (Shamal) or the dry and hot desert wind (Qaws),
which comes from the Great Arab Desert.
Flora and fauna
Until the beginning of the 20th century, large stocks
of date palms were typical of the fauna of the main
island of Bahrain. Due to clearing for agricultural
purposes or drying up (due to the sinking of the
groundwater level), only small residual stocks are
available today. The country is characterized by poor,
desert-like vegetation with thorny shrubs and hard
The animal world is also poor in species. Larger
mammals, such as gazelles, are almost extinct due to the
restricted habitat and intensive hunting. Desert and
spring mice, lizards and the sneak cats (mongooses)
imported from India are still common. Arabian oryx
antelopes live in a 10 km² protected area in the
southwest of the island.
Over a million people live in the Kingdom of Bahrain,
most of them in the north of the main island. The
largest city is the capital Manama with approximately
155,000 residents. At almost 50%, the proportion of
foreigners is one of the highest in the world. Three
quarters of non-Bahraini come from other Arab countries,
around 17% are Indian, and smaller parts of the
population come from Pakistan or Europe (especially
Islam is the state religion in Bahrain, around 90% of
the total population are Muslims. Over two thirds of
them are Shiites, but the ruling class in the country is
recruited from the third third Sunnis. Christians and
Hindus form small religious minorities.
Living standards are relatively high, with an
estimated GDP per capita of around $ 25,000, and social
security and health care are well developed. According to COUNTRYAAH,
expectancy averages 74 years and population growth is
around 1.5%. There is no compulsory school attendance,
but there are enough schools available. The literacy
rate is given as 89%. There is a university in the
The official language is Arabic, English is the usual
According to the 2002 constitution, Bahrain is a
constitutional hereditary monarchy (emirate) with the
king as head of state (Hamad Ibn Isa Al-Khalifa, emir
since 1999; king since 2002. The Al-Khalifah family has
ruled the country since 1782). The head of government is
Khalifa bin Salman Al-Khalifa (since 1971). The
Parliament consists of two chambers: the Chamber of
Deputies (40 members, directly elected by the people for
four years) and the Consultative Council (Madschlis
al-Shura, 40 members, appointed by the King for four
years). The judiciary is independent of the king and
Bahrain has been divided into five governorates since
2002, before that the country was divided into twelve
Until the beginning of the new millennium, the
pillars of the successful economy were the oil and
natural gas deposits, whereby the oil deposits are
practically exhausted (natural gas probably around
2015). In recent years, a large part of the proceeds
from oil exports have been invested in building an
oil-independent economy. The industry in particular has
been expanded and diversified; Bahrain now has a modern
aluminum smelter and processing plant, a refinery that
processes oil from Saudi Arabia and a shipyard. The
country also became an international financial center;
Tax breaks and a wealthy clientele are attracting more
and more foreign banks, credit institutions and service
companies. In 2004, Bahrain was the first Gulf country
to sign a free trade agreement with the United States.
Due to the nature of the soil and the lack of water,
agriculture only plays a subordinate role in Bahrain,
only 1% of the workforce is employed here and approx.
0.75% of the gross domestic product is generated here.
The most important cultivated products are vegetables,
rice, dates and citrus fruits. Sheep and goats are kept
to a limited extent. Fishing is of growing importance.
Bahrain's groundwater reserves are almost exhausted, but
modern seawater treatment plants ensure that the
population is supplied with drinking water.
An important but difficult industry is the textile
industry. In 2004 there was a free trade agreement
between the United States and Bahrain. Tourism is also
Bahrain's main trading partners are Saudi Arabia,
China and Brazil. Crude oil and petroleum products still
have the largest share of exports; crude oil, industrial
products, machines and vehicles are mainly imported.
The country's infrastructure is very well developed
in the densely populated north of the country. A 25 km
long road embankment connects the main island of Bahrain
with Saudi Arabia. In addition to the port of Manama,
which is an important hub for the trade of all Gulf
states, the deep-sea port Sulman is of great importance,
which is the core of a free trade zone. The only
commercial airport is Bahrain International Airport on
the island of al-Muharraq.
The currency is the Bahraini dinar (= 1,000 fils).