About
Established on 2 December 1971 seven emirates, situated towards the south-east of the Arabian Peninsula, constitute the United Arab Emirates (UAE): Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm al-Qaiwain, Ra’s al-Khaimah and Fujairah
| Capital: | Abu Dhabi |
| Time: | UTC + 4 |
| Currency: | Emirati dirham (Dh or AED) |
| Exchange rate: | Dh3.67 per 1 US dollar. The UAE dirham has been officially pegged to the US dollar since February 2002 |
| Flag: | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and black with a wider vertical red band on the hoist side |
| Location: | a roughly triangular landmass on the south-eastern tip of the Arabian Peninsula. The UAE is bordered to seaward by the Arabian Gulf and part of the western shores of the Gulf of Oman, with Saudi Arabia and Oman to landward |
| Latitude/Longitude: | 22–25˚N 51–56.5˚E |
| Area: | approximately 83,600 square kilometres, slightly bigger than Scotland. Abu Dhabi emirate accounts for about 87 per cent of the total area, excluding the islands |
| Topography: | a low-lying coastal plain merges into the rolling sand dunes of the Rub al-Khali desert whilst precipitous mountains skirt the UAE’s eastern border with Oman |
| Highest point: | at 1627 metres on the top of Jebel Yibir in the Hajar Mountains |
| Natural resources: | the most important are oil and natural gas, almost 95 per cent of which are located in Abu Dhabi |
| Climate: | the UAE enjoys a tropical desert climate with hot, humid summers, (average temperature 37˚C) moderate, sunny winters (average temperature 18˚C) and scanty rainfall (less than 100mm in an average year). It is generally cooler and less humid and rainfall is higher in the eastern mountains |
| Political system: | a federation with specific areas of authority constitutionally assigned to the UAE Federal Government and other powers reserved for member emirates |
| Constitution: | adopted provisionally on 2 December 1971, made permanent in 1996 |
| Supreme Council: | this top policy-making body comprises the rulers of each emirate |
| President: | H.H. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler of Abu Dhabi |
| Vice-President & Prime Minister: | H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai |
| Deputy Prime Minister: | H.H. Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan |
| Deputy Prime Minister: | H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan |
| Cabinet: | a 24-member executive authority, including four women. All members of the council of ministers are nominated by the Prime Minister and appointed by the President |
| Legal system: | in addition to the federal court system, all emirates have secular courts to adjudicate criminal, civil, and commercial matters and Islamic courts to review family and religious disputes |
| International organisations: | the UAE is an active member of a wide range of international organisations, including the United Nations and subsidiary bodies, for example UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNICEF, FAO, G77, IRENA, IAEA, IMF, OAPEC, OPEC, WIPO and WTO |
| Foreign aid: | in 2012 the Government and other UAE donors gave a total of Dh5.83 billion (US$1.59 billion) in the form of grants and loans to development, humanitarian and charitable programmes in 137 countries and territories, and committed Dh5.59 billion (US$1.52 billion) to development projects |
| Population (est. 2013): | 9.2 million. UAE nationals account for about 12% of total population. Abu Dhabi emirate has the largest population (2.5 million), followed by Dubai (2.1 million), Sharjah, Ra’s al-Khaimah, Ajman, Fujairah and Umm al-Qaiwain |
| Language: | Arabic |
| Religion: | Islam, practice of all religious beliefs is allowed |
| GDP per capita: | US$42,293 |
| Life expectancy at birth: | 78.7 years (female), 75.2 years (male) |
| Under-five mortality rate: | 8.2 per 1000 live births |
| Mean years of schooling: | 8.9 |
| Adult literacy rate: | 93% |
| Mobile phone subscribers (2013): | 15.13 million, penetration rate of 181.3% |
| Internet subscribers (2013): | 1.018 million |
| GDP (2012): | US$375 billion (over Dh1 trillion) |
| Real GDP growth (2012): | 4.4%; (2013: est): 3.6% |
| Non-oil sector contribution to GDP (2012): | 58% |
| Inflation rate (2012): | 0.7% |
| Industries: | petrochemicals, aluminium, steel, cement, automotive sector, tourism, aviation, transport and logistics, commercial ship repair, pharmaceuticals, tourism, food processing, financial services, real estate |
| Oil production capacity (2012): | 2.813 million barrels per day (bpd) |
| Oil production (2012): | 2.66 million bpd (Middle East’s fourth largest producer) |
| Oil proven reserves: | 97.8 billion barrels (seventh largest in the world) |
| Natural gas production: | 4.5 million standard cubic feet per day |
| Natural gas proven reserves: | 227.1 trilion cubic feet (seventh largest in the world) |
| Exports (2012): | US$302 billion, up 7.4% on 2011 and amounting to 1.6% of total world exports |
| Imports (2012): | US$220 billion, up 9% on 2011 and amounting to 1.1% of total world imports |
| Tourism: | over 15 million people visited the UAE in 2012, contributing Dh193.6 billion (US$53 billion) or 14% to GDP and cementing its position as one of the fastest growing tourism destinations in the world |
| Cultivated land: | less than 1% |
| Agriculture: | contributed Dh10.48 billion (US$2.9 billion) to GDP in 2012 |
| Agricultural products: | dates, green fodder, vegetables and fruit, livestock, poultry, eggs, dairy products, fish |
| Ports: | more than 20, including state-of-the art oil terminals and world class industrial ports. Its most modern, Khalifa Port, opened in Abu Dhabi in 2012, whilst Jebel Ali in Dubai is the region’s biggest port |
| International Airports: | 7, including the newest, Al Maktoum International Airport. Over 60 million passengers passed through Dubai Airport in 2013, marking it as the second-largest airport in the world |