The Emirates are: Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah, and Fujairah.

Government: Federation of the seven Emirates, each with its own ruler.

President: Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

Prime Minister: Sheikh Maktoum Bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

Independence Day: December 2, 1971.

Flag: Three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and black with a thicker vertical red band on the hoist side.

Capital: Abu Dhabi.

Geographical Location: It lies between latitudes, 22º, 26.5º North, and longitudes 51º, 56.5º East. It is located in Western Asia on the Arabian Gulf in the Arabian Peninsula. The UAE is bordered to the North by the Arabian Gulf, to the East by the Gulf of Oman and the Sultanate of Oman, to the South by the Sultanate of Oman and Saudi Arabia, and to the West by Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Area: 83,600 sq km (32,270 sq. miles)

Coastline: 650 km (404 miles)

Land Boundaries: 867 km (539 miles)

Terrain: Flat, barren coastal plain merging into rolling sand dunes of vast desert wasteland; mountains in east

Population: 2,377,453 (Preliminary of Population Census, December 1995).

Language: Arabic is the official language, although English is widely used and is the language of commerce

Religion: Muslims 96%; Christian, Hindu, and others 4%.

Climate: From the months of November to May, the temperature ranges from 18º to 25º Celsius, with occasional rainfall during the winter months. Hot temperatures and high humidity increase between the months of June and August. The average temperature in the summer is 35º Celsius

Rainfall: an average of 42 millimeters per year.

Geology & Topography: The country is made up primarily of arid desert and salt flats. In the Northeast, the Hajar mountains rise to almost 1,200 meters.There are fertile areas in Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah, and the oases

Wildlife: The UAE is also the home to significant, though small, populations of the endangered Arabian leopard, the caracal, and a remnant population of recently rediscovered Arabian tahr, while its coastal mangroves are among the most extensive to be found anywhere around the Arabian peninsula. Click here for more details and photographs.

Economy: The country is a major oil exporter and the UAE is one of the richest countries in the world with a GDP per capita income of $16,500 (1995).

Currency: The UAE Dirham (Dh), 1 Dh = 100 fils.

Exchange Rate: 3.65 Dh per US $1

Hospitals: 51 with a total of 6,357 beds (1995).

Pharmacies: 643 with 185 belonging to the Ministry of Health (1995).

Doctors: 3,803 with 1,839 doctors in the private sector.

Life Expectancy at Birth: 71.4 years (1994).

Infant Mortality Rate: 16.6 per 1,000 live birth (1994).

Literacy Rate: 84.6% (1995).

Number of Schools: In the school year 1995-96, there were 615 Public Schools, 375 Private Schools, 138 Adult Education Schools, and 4 Defense Schools. A total of 1,132 schools.

Number of Students in Primary, Preparatory, and Secondary Schools: 422,037 (1994/1995).

UAE University Students: 11,576 (1995). Students on Scholarship Studies: 1,055 (1996). Agriculture: 19,000 farms with a total of 54,500 hectares of cultivated land (1994).

Oil Production: 2.16 million barrels per day (1995).

Factories: 1,225 (1991).

Number of banks: 47 with 349 branches (1994).

Desalination Plants: 42 (1991); 82% of water comes from desalination.

Paved Highways: 3,254 km (2,022 miles) (1994). Commercial Seaports: 15.

Free Zones: 8. These are: Jebel Ali, Sharjah Airport International, Hamriyah, Fujairah, Saadyat, Ajman, Ras Al Khaimah,
and Dubai Airport International.

International Airports: 6. Post Offices: 56 (1997).

Post Office Boxes: 116,000 (1994).

Telephone Exchange Lines: 775,000 (1997).

Telex Working Lines: 4,028 Exchange Lines per 1,000

inhabitants: 40 (1996).

Mobile phones: 253,000 (1997).

Internet E-mail accounts: 60,000 approximately

Radio Paging Service: 258,000 (May 1997).

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