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YEMEN                                                                           
GEOGRAPHY                                                                       
Total area: 527,970 km2; land area: 527,970 km2; 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)          
                                                                                
Comparative area: slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming                
                                                                                
Land boundaries: 1,746 km total; Oman 288 km, Saudi Arabia 1,458 km             
                                                                                
Coastline: 1,906 km                                                             
                                                                                
Maritime claims:                                                                
                                                                                
Contiguous zone: North--18 nm; South--24 nm;                                    
                                                                                
Continental shelf: North--200 meters (depth); South--edge of                    
continental margin or 200 nm;                                                   
                                                                                
Exclusive economic zone: North--no claim; South 200 nm;                         
                                                                                
Territorial sea: 12 nm                                                          
                                                                                
Disputes: undefined section of boundary with Saudi Arabia;                      
Administrative Line with Oman                                                   
                                                                                
Climate: desert; hot and humid along west coast; temperate in                   
western mountains; 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: crude oil, fish, rock salt, marble; small                    
deposits of coal, gold, lead, nickel, and copper; fertile soil in west          
                                                                                
Land use: arable land 6%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and                    
pastures 30%; forest and woodland 7%; other 57%; includes irrigated             
NEGL%                                                                           
                                                                                
Environment: subject to sand and dust storms in summer; scarcity of             
natural freshwater resources; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification        
                                                                                
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: 10,062,633 (July 1991), growth rate 3.2% (1991)                     
                                                                                
Birth rate: 51 births/1,000 population (1991)                                   
                                                                                
Death rate: 16 deaths/1,000 population (1991)                                   
                                                                                
Net migration rate: - 3 migrants/1,000 population (1991)                        
                                                                                
Infant mortality rate: 121 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)                      
                                                                                
Life expectancy at birth: 49 years male, 51 years female (1991)                 
                                                                                
Total fertility rate: 7.4 children born/woman (1991)                            
                                                                                
Nationality: noun--Yemeni(s); adjective--Yemeni                                 
                                                                                
Ethnic divisions:                                                               
North--Arab 90%, Afro-Arab (mixed) 10%;                                         
South--almost all Arabs; a few Indians, Somalis, and Europeans                  
                                                                                
Religion:                                                                       
North--Muslim 100% (Sunni and Shia);                                            
South--Sunni Muslim, some Christian and Hindu                                   
                                                                                
Language: Arabic                                                                
                                                                                
Literacy: 38% (male 53%, female 26%) age 15 and over can                        
read and write (1990 est.)                                                      
                                                                                
Labor force:                                                                    
North--NA number of workers with agriculture and herding 70%, and               
expatriate laborers 30% (est.);                                                 
South--477,000 with agriculture 45.2%, services 21.2%, construction             
13.4%, industry 10.6%, commerce and other 9.6% (1983)                           
                                                                                
Organized labor:                                                                
North--NA;                                                                      
South--348,200 and the General Confederation of Workers of the                  
People's Democratic Republic of Yemen had 35,000 members                        
                                                                                
GOVERNMENT                                                                      
Long-form name: Republic of Yemen                                               
                                                                                
Type: republic                                                                  
                                                                                
Capital: Sanaa                                                                  
                                                                                
Administrative divisions: 17 governorates (muhafazat,                           
singular--muhafazah); Abyan, Adan, Al Bayda,                                    
Al Hudaydah, Al Jawf, Al Mahrah, Al Mahwit, Dhamar,                             
Hadramawt, Hajjah, Ibb, Lahij, Marib, Sadah, Sana,                              
Shabwah, Taizz                                                                  
                                                                                
Independence: 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); the             
union is to be solidified during a 30-month transition period, which            
coincides with the remainder of the five-year terms of both legislatures        
                                                                                
Constitution: 16 April 1991                                                     
                                                                                
Legal system: based on Islamic law, Turkish law, English common                 
law, and local customary law; does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction       
                                                                                
National holiday: Proclamation of the Republic, 22 May (1990)                   
                                                                                
Executive branch: five-member Presidential Council (president,                  
vice president, two members from northern Yemen and one member from             
southern Yemen), prime minister                                                 
                                                                                
Legislative branch: unicameral House of Representatives;                        
note--northern Yemen's Consultative Assembly (Majlis Chura) and                 
southern Yemen's Supreme People's Council (Majlis al-Shab al-Ala)               
will combine to form the basis for the new unicameral House of                  
Representatives                                                                 
                                                                                
Judicial branch: North--State Security Court; South--Federal                    
High Court                                                                      
                                                                                
Leaders:                                                                        
                                                                                
Chief of State and Head of Government President Ali Abdallah                    
SALIH (since 22 May 1990, the former president of North Yemen); Vice            
President Ali Salim al-BIDH (since 22 May 1990, secretary general of the        
Yemeni Socialist Party); Presidential Council Member Salim Salih                
MUHAMMED (southern Yemen); Presidential Council Member Kadi Abdul-Karim         
al-ARASHI (northern Yemen); Presidential Council Member Abdul-Aziz              
ABDUL-GHANI (northern Yemen); Prime Minister Haydar Abu Bakr                    
al-ATTAS (since 22 May 1990, former president of South Yemen)                   
                                                                                
Political parties and leaders:                                                  
General People's Congress, Ali Abdallah SALIH;                                  
Yemeni Socialist Party (YSP; formerly South Yemen's ruling party--a             
coalition of National Front, Bath, and Communist Parties), Ali Salim            
al-BIDH                                                                         
                                                                                
Suffrage: universal at age 18                                                   
Elections:                                                                      
                                                                                
House of Representatives--last held NA (next to be held                         
26-27 May, 12 June, and 24 July 1991);                                          
results--percent of vote NA;                                                    
seats--(301); number of seats by party NA; note--the 301 members of             
the new House of Representatives will come from North Yemen's                   
Consultative Assembly (159 members), South Yemen's Supreme People's             
Council (111 members), and appointments by the New Presidential Council         
(31 members)                                                                    
                                                                                
Communists: small number in North, greater but unknown number                   
in South                                                                        
                                                                                
Other political or pressure groups: conservative tribal groups,                 
Muslim Brotherhood, leftist factions--pro-Iraqi Bathists, Nasirists,            
National Democratic Front (NDF)                                                 
                                                                                
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: Ambassador Muhsin Ahmad al-AYNI;                     
Chancery at Suite 840, 600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington DC 20037;        
telephone (202) 965-4760 or 4761; there is a Yemeni Consulate General in        
Detroit and a Consulate in San Francisco;                                       
                                                                                
US--Ambassador Charles F. DUNBAR; Embassy at Dhahr Himyar Zone,                 
Sheraton Hotel District, Sanaa (mailing address is P. O. Box 22347 Sanaa,       
Republic of Yemen or Sanaa--Department of State, Washington, D. C.              
20521-6330); telephone  967  (2) 238-842 through 238-852                        
                                                                                
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 promising oil resources. South Yemen's willingness to merge stemmed          
partly from the steady decline in Soviet economic support.                      
                                                                                
North--The low level of domestic industry and agriculture have made             
northern Yemen dependent on imports for virtually all of its essential          
needs. Large trade deficits have been made up for by remittances from           
Yemenis working abroad and foreign aid. Once self-sufficient in food            
production, northern Yemen has been a major importer. Land once used for        
export crops--cotton, fruit, and vegetables--has been turned over to            
growing qat, a mildly narcotic shrub chewed by Yemenis that has no              
significant export market. Oil export revenues started flowing in late          
1987 and boosted 1988 earnings by about $800 million.                           
                                                                                
South--This has been one of the poorest Arab countries, with a per              
capita GNP of about $500. A shortage of natural resources, a widely             
dispersed population, and an arid climate have made economic development        
difficult. The economy has grown at an average annual rate of only 2-3%         
since the mid-1970s. The economy had been organized along socialist             
lines, dominated by the public sector. Economic growth has been                 
constrained by a lack of incentives, partly stemming from centralized           
control over production decisions, investment allocation, and import            
choices.                                                                        
                                                                                
GDP: $5.3 billion, per capita $545; real growth rate NA%                        
(1990 est.)                                                                     
                                                                                
Inflation rate (consumer prices):                                               
                                                                                
North--16.9% (1988);                                                            
                                                                                
South--0% (1989)                                                                
                                                                                
Unemployment rate:                                                              
                                                                                
North--13% (1986);                                                              
                                                                                
South--NA%                                                                      
                                                                                
Budget:                                                                         
                                                                                
North--revenues $1.4 billion; expenditures $2.2 billion,                        
including capital expenditures of $590 million (1988 est.);                     
                                                                                
South--revenues and grants $435 million; expenditures $1.0 billion,             
including capital expenditure of $460 million (1988 est.)                       
                                                                                
Exports:                                                                        
                                                                                
North--$606 million (f.o.b., 1989);                                             
                                                                                
commodities--crude oil, cotton, coffee, hides, vegetables;                      
                                                                                
partners--FRG 29%, US 26%, Netherlands 12%;                                     
                                                                                
South--$113.8 million (f.o.b., 1989 est.);                                      
                                                                                
commodities--cotton, hides, skins, dried and salted fish;                       
                                                                                
partners--Japan, North Yemen, Italy                                             
                                                                                
Imports:                                                                        
                                                                                
North--$1.3 billion (f.o.b., 1988);                                             
                                                                                
commodities--textiles and other manufactured consumer goods,                    
petroleum products, sugar, grain, flour, other foodstuffs, and cement;          
                                                                                
partners--Saudi Arabia 12%, France 6%, US 5%, Australia 5%                      
(1985);                                                                         
                                                                                
South--$553.9 million (f.o.b., 1989 est.);                                      
                                                                                
commodities--grain, consumer goods, crude oil, machinery,                       
chemicals;                                                                      
                                                                                
partners--USSR, UK, Ethiopia                                                    
                                                                                
External debt: $5.75 billion (December 1989 est.)                               
                                                                                
Industrial production:                                                          
                                                                                
North--growth rate 2% in manufacturing (1988);                                  
                                                                                
South--growth rate NA% in manufacturing                                         
                                                                                
Electricity: 670,000 kW capacity; 1,100 million kWh produced,                   
110 kWh per capita (1990)                                                       
                                                                                
Industries: crude oil production and petroleum refining;                        
small-scale production of cotton textiles and leather goods; food               
processing; handicrafts; fishing; small aluminum products factory; cement       
                                                                                
Agriculture:                                                                    
                                                                                
North--accounted for 26% of GDP and 70% of labor force; farm                    
products--grain, fruits, vegetables, qat (mildly narcotic shrub), coffee,       
cotton, dairy, poultry, meat, goat meat; not self-sufficient in grain;          
                                                                                
South--accounted for 17% of GNP and 45% of labor force;                         
products--grain, qat (mildly narcotic shrub), coffee, fish, livestock;          
fish and honey major exports; most food imported                                
                                                                                
Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $389                   
million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments          
(1970-88), $1.9 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $3.2 billion;            
Communist countries (1970-89), $2.4 billion                                     
                                                                                
Currency:                                                                       
                                                                                
North Yemeni riyal (plural--riyals); 1 North Yemeni riyal                       
(YR) = 100 fils;                                                                
                                                                                
South Yemeni dinar (plural--dinars); 1 South Yemeni dinar                       
(YD) = 1,000 fils                                                               
                                                                                
Exchange rates:                                                                 
                                                                                
North Yemeni riyals (YR) per US$1--9.7600 (January 1990), 9.7600 (1989),        
9.7717 (1988), 10.3417 (1987), 9.6392 (1986), 7.3633 (1985);                    
                                                                                
South Yemeni dinars (YD) per US$1--0.3454 (fixed rate)                          
                                                                                
Fiscal year: calendar year                                                      
                                                                                
COMMUNICATIONS                                                                  
Highways: 15,500 km; 4,000 km bituminous, 11,500 km natural                     
surface (est.)                                                                  
                                                                                
Pipelines: crude oil, 424 km; refined products, 32 km                           
                                                                                
Ports: Aden, Al Hudaydah, Al Khalf, Mocha, Nishtun,                             
Ras Kathib, Salif                                                               
                                                                                
Merchant marine: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling                           
4,309 GRT/6,568 DWT; includes 2 cargo, 1 petroleum, oils, and                   
lubricants (POL) tanker                                                         
                                                                                
Civil air: 15 major transport aircraft                                          
                                                                                
Airports: 49 total, 40 usable; 10 with permanent-surface runways;               
none with runways over 3,659 m; 20 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;                  
12 with runways 1,220-2,439 m                                                   
                                                                                
Telecommunications: the North has a poor but improving system with              
new radio relay and cable networks, while the South has a small system of       
open-wire, radio relay, multiconductor cable, and radio communications          
stations; 65,000 telephones (est.); stations--4 AM, no FM, 22 TV;               
satellite earth stations--2 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Atlantic Ocean             
INTELSAT, 1 Intersputnik, 2 ARABSAT; radio relay to Saudi Arabia, and           
Djibouti                                                                        
                                                                                
DEFENSE FORCES                                                                  
Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Police                                         
                                                                                
Manpower availability: males 15-49, 1,906,887;                                  
1,084,122 fit for military service;                                             
134,158 reach military age (14) annually                                        
                                                                                
Defense expenditures: $1.06 billion, 20% of GDP (1990)