Name:
Negara Brunei Darussalam
Capital: Bandar
Seri Begawan
Location:
Southeastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and Malaysia
Area: 5,770
square kilometers (kms) (slightly larger than Delaware)
Coastline: 161
kms
Climate:
tropical; hot, humid, rainy
Population:
280,000 (based on Brunei Darrusalam Key Indicators 1993)
Ethnic divisions:
Malay 64%, Chinese 20%, other 16%
Religions:
Muslim (official) 63%, Buddhism 14%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs and other
15% (1981)
Literacy: total
population: 88%
Literacy: male:
92%
Literacy: female:
82%
Languages:
Malay (official), English, Chinese
Type of Government:
constitutional sultanate
Independence: 1
January 1984 (from UK)
National holiday:
National Day 23 February (1984)
Constitution:
29 September 1959 (some provisions suspended under a State of Emergency since
December 1962, others since independence on 1 January 1984)
Legal system:
based on Islamic law
National product:
GDP -- purchasing power parity -- $3.975 billion (based on Brunei Darrusalam Key
Indicators 1993)
National product
real growth rate: -4% (1993 est.)
National product
per capita: $14,240 (based on Brunei Darrusalam Key Indicators 1993)
Exports: $2.2
billion (f.o.b.1993 est.)
Export commodities:
crude oil, liquefied natural gas, petroleum products
Trading partners:
Japan 52%, South Korea 10%, UK 9%, Thailand 7%, Singapore 6% (1991)
Imports: $1.2
billion (c.i.f., 1993 est.)
Import commodities:
machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, chemicals
Trading partners:
Singapore 34%, UK 23%, US 10%, Japan 8%, Malaysia 7%, Switzerland 4% (1991)
External debt:
$0
Industrial
production: growth rate 12.9% (1987); accounts for 41.6% of GDP (1990),
includes mining, quarrying, and manufacturing
Major Industries:
petroleum, petroleum refining, liquefied natural gas, construction
Agriculture:
imports about 80% of its food needs; principal crops and livestock include rice,
cassava, bananas, buffaloes, and pigs
Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas, timber
Currency: 1 Bruneian dollar (B$) = 100 cents