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| UAE General
Info |
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Area:
77,700 sq km or 30,000 square miles.
Population:
2,724,000 (1998).
Population
Density: 35.1 per sq km.
Capital:
Abu Dhabi. Population: 398,695
(1995).
Geography: The
Emirates are bordered to the north by the Gulf and the Musandam
Peninsula. To the east by Oman and to the south and west by Saudi
Arabia and to the northwest by Qatar. They are comprised by a federation
of seven small former sheikhdoms. Abu Dhabi being the largest Emirate
and followed by Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Fujairah, Umm al Qaiwain
and Ras al- Khaimah are known collectively as the Northern States.
The land is mountainous and largely desert. Abu Dhabi is sandy and
flat and inside its border is the Buraimi Oasis. Dubai with its
16km (10-mile) deep-water creek, gives it the popular name of ‘Pearl
of the Gulf’. Sharjah has a deep water port on coast of Batinah
at Khor Fakkan, on the Indian Ocean. Ras al-Khaimah is the fourth
in size. Fujairah, one of the three smaller sheikhdoms is located
on the Batinah coast and has agricultural potential. Ajman and Umm
al Qaiwain were once small coastal fishing villages.
Government:
Federation of seven autonomous Emirates.
Head of State: Sheikh Zâyid Bin Sultân An-Nahyân
(Emir of Abu Dhabi) since 1971.
Head of Government:
Vice President Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al-Maktoum (Emir of Dubai)
since 1979.
Language:
Arabic is the official language and English is widely spoken.
Religion: Majority Muslim,
16 per cent are Shiite and the remainder Sunni.
Time:
GMT + 4 hours.
Electricity:
220/240 volts AC, 50Hz. Square three-pin plugs are widespread. |
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