1.
KSA: Country Profile
The
present Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was originally several provinces
which were also under Ottoman rule rule until the end of W.W.I.
Attempts by the first king Abdulaziz Al Saud to establish the Kingdom
started as early as 1902, which with successes and setbacks were
continued for many years until in 1932 when the Kingdom in its present
boundaries was established. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a member
of the GCC.
Geographically,
it is one of the largest Arab countries with a land area of over
2.1 million square kilometres extending from the Red Sea to the
Gulf and a population of nearly 20 million. In 1937 oil was
discovered. Since then Saudi Arabia has become the largest oil and
gas producer in the Area with the largest proven reserves. In 1988
Saudi production was over 8.3 million bpd with revenues of $ 37.3
billion. Saudi Arabia was one of the founder members of OPEC. This
substantial wealth was, over the years, used to finance substantial
development programmes. The Saudi currency, the Riyal, is also linked
to the US$ at the exchange rate of Riyals 3.7 to $1.
Although
Saudi Arabia has a free market economy with a predominant
private sector, the main public utilities and services are owned
by the government. A privatisation programme is being seriously
considered.
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