The Kingdom of Bahrain

By Brendan Verbrugge

Geography

Geography
Bahrain is a desert island located in the Persian Gulf
slightly north west from Qatar
o The islands approximate coordinates are 26 00 N, and 50
33 E

The entire island has an area of about 760 sq.

kilometers, or roughly 3.5 times the size of Washington
DC
The entire island is covered in desert, and suffers from a
very arid climate

Geography
Despite Bahrain's arid climate, many people
still live there to get access to the large oil
reserves found under the island
As for other natural resources, Bahrain has
access to pearls and fish

Government

Government
Bahrain is a constitutional monarchy
It is currently ruled by King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa
o Hamad has 12 children, and the oldest, Prince Salman bin
Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa, is the crown prince of Bahrain
The King controls almost everything that happens in his
country, including what personal rights his civilians have
As of 2010, about half of the government is composed of the AlKhalifa family
The Al-Khalifa family are also Sunni Muslims, who contrast with
the Shia majority population

Colonial Times

Colonial Times
The Al-Khalifa family took power in Bahrain in
1783
o In order to secure their grip on power, the family
agreed to several treaties with Britain in the 1800s
that made Bahrain a British protectorate

Bahrain was later able to gain its independence

on August 15th, 1971

Economy

Economy
Bahrains economy is largely based around the
production and refining of petroleum
o Petroleum is Bahrain's largest export; in 2012,
petroleum accounted for 77% of all Bahrains
exported goods

One thing Bahrain is trying to do now though is

make its economy less dependant on oil
o Bahrain is starting to branch out to other services,
like aluminum production and banking

Economy
Bahrain's GDP as of 2013 is $34.96 billion, and
its per capita GDP is $29,800
o Bahrain is 110th in the world in terms of GDP, and
49th in the world in terms of per capita GDP

Bahrain imports many goods as well

o In 2006, Bahrain became the third Arab
country to finalize a free-trade-agreement
(FTA) with the US

Economy
The FTA stimulated considerable amounts of
trade between the US and Bahrain
o among goods commonly imported to them
was machinery; most notably, airplane parts
Bahrain also imports large amounts of oil from
Saudi Arabia

Conflicts

Conflicts
Like many middle eastern countries, Bahrain is not without
internal conflict
o The Shia Muslim populace is unhappy with the Sunni monarchy
and believes that it is abusing them and their rights
o Since 2011 (February 14), uprisings have been common across the
country
o Some of the protests are violent; protesters make homemade
bombs to throw at policemen
o The government is ruthless with these protesters; thousands have
been arrested
o These sad protests are ongoing; more than 80 civilians and 13
policeman had been killed as of March 2014

People

People
There are more 1,300,000 people living in Bahrain
today
o Of these, a little over 300,000 live in the capital (and
largest city), Manama
o About 55% of Bahrain's population are actually
immigrants from other countries

Islam is the most popular religion in the country, with

70.% of the population practicing it
o 14.5% follow Christianity, 9.8% practice Hindu, 2.5%
practice Buddhism, and 0.6% practice Judaism

Education

Education
12 years of school are available, free of charge,
for every Bahraini citizen
o 6 years elementary, 3 years middle school, 3 years
high school

There are different schools for girls and boys

As of 2010, 96.1% of the male population is
literate, and 91.6% of the female population is
literate

Military Capabilities and International

Relations

Military Capabilities and International

Relations
Bahrains relationship with surrounding
countries is mostly peaceful
o Bahrain depends on imports from surrounding
countries to keep its economy going, so it cant
afford to be hostile

As far as military capabilities go, Bahrain

currently has about 669,059 civilians fit for
military service

Tourist/Interesting Destinations

Manama

Tourist/Interesting Destinations

The Tree of Life

Tourist/Interesting Destinations

The Durrat Al Bahrain Complex

Current Events

Current Events-Al Arab Yanked Off the Air

Just recently in Bahrain, a rich Saudi prince
named Alwaleed bin Talal wanted to set up a
cable news channel called Al Arab
o The channel promised to be non-politically biased, but
the channel was yanked off the air on its first broadcast
o This was because they invited the leader of Al Wefaq,
Khalil Marzouq, to provide commentary on the
government's decision to revoke the nationality of 72
Bahrainis

Current Events- Tougher Traffic Laws

On February 8, Bahrain saw some tough new
traffic laws come into place
o Even touching your phone while driving could lead
to a fine up to BD500, or about $1325.91
o In the past, speeding or a DUI resulted in fines
around BD5 to BD10 ($13.26 to $26.52), but now a
DUI will result in being fined up to BD1000
($2651.82) and a jail term

Works Cited
Central Intelligence Agency. Central Intelligence Agency. Web. 2 Feb. 2015. <https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/theworld-factbook/geos/ba.html>.
The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. Web. 8 Feb. 2015.
<http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturepicturegalleries/9108702/Everyday-life-in-Bahrain.html?image=2>.
"Bahrain." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 2 Feb. 2015. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bahrain>.
"Country Report Bahrain." Web. 5 Feb. 2015. <http://web.a.ebscohost.com.sled.idm.oclc.org/ehost/detail/detail?
vid=4&sid=8e915fa4-1b73-45c4-928ab2225966c8e2@sessionmgr4002&hid=4107&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ==#db=buh&AN=99796710>.
"Education in Bahrain." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 5 Feb. 2015.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Bahrain>.
"How Arab World's Newest Cable News Source Made a Splash, Only to Dry up." The Christian Science Monitor. The
Christian Science Monitor. Web. 7 Feb. 2015. <http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2015/0208/How-Arabworld-s-newest-cable-news-source-made-a-splash-only-to-dry-up>.
"Less Than A Day Old, Bahrain News Channel Is Yanked Off The Air." NPR. NPR. Web. 5 Feb. 2015.
<http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2015/02/02/383288631/less-than-a-day-old-bahrain-news-channel-is-yanked-offthe-air>.
"RE-THINK." RETHINK. Web. 8 Feb. 2015. <http://rethink.com.bh/en/>.
"YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!" Gulf Daily News Local News . Web. 8 Feb. 2015. <http://www.gulf-dailynews.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=395508>.