Country name

conventional long form: Republic of Yemen
conventional short form: Yemen
local short form: Al Yaman
local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Yamaniyah

Government type

republic

Capital

Sanaa

Administrative divisions

21 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Abyan, 'Adan (Aden), Ad Dali', Al Bayda', Al Hudaydah, Al Jawf, Al Mahrah, Al Mahwit, Amanat al 'Asimah, 'Amran, Dhamar, Hadramawt, Hajjah, Ibb, Lahij, Ma'rib, Raymah, Sa'dah, San'a' (Sanaa), Shabwah, Ta'izz

National holiday

Unification Day, 22 May (1990)

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Location

Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Red Sea, between Oman and Saudi Arabia

Geographic coordinates

15 00 N, 48 00 E

Map references

Middle East

Area

total: 527,970 sq km
land: 527,970 sq km
note: includes Perim, Socotra, the former Yemen Arab Republic (YAR or North Yemen), and the former People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY or South Yemen)
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming

Land boundaries

total: 1,746 km
border countries: Oman 288 km, Saudi Arabia 1,458 km

Coastline

1,906 km

Maritime claims - as described in UNCLOS 1982 (see Notes and Definitions)

territorial sea: 12 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM

Climate

mostly desert; hot and humid along west coast; temperate in western mountains affected by seasonal monsoon; extraordinarily hot, dry, harsh desert in east

Terrain

narrow coastal plain backed by flat-topped hills and rugged mountains; dissected upland desert plains in center slope into the desert interior of the Arabian Peninsula

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Arabian Sea 0 m
highest point: Jabal an Nabi Shu'ayb 3,760 m

Natural resources

petroleum, fish, rock salt, marble, small deposits of coal, gold, lead, nickel, and copper, fertile soil in west

Land use

arable land: 2.91%
permanent crops: 0.25%
other: 96.84% (2005)

GDP

purchasing power parity - $58.19 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 84

GDP - real growth rate

3.8% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 43

GDP - per capita

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 9.7%
industry: 39.1%
services: 51.2% (2009 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

most people are employed in agriculture and herding; services, construction, industry, and commerce account for less than one-fourth of the labor force

Industries

crude oil production and petroleum refining; small-scale production of cotton textiles and leather goods; food processing; handicrafts; small aluminum products factory; cement; commercial ship repair; natural gas production

Agriculture - products

grain, fruits, vegetables, pulses, qat, coffee, cotton; dairy products, livestock (sheep, goats, cattle, camels), poultry; fish

Exports

$5.812 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 99

Exports - commodities

crude oil, coffee, dried and salted fish, liquefied natural gas

Exports - partners

China 30.9%, Thailand 25.7%, South Africa 14.6%, India 8.8%, Japan 5.1%, UAE 4.2% (2008)

Imports

$7.521 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 96

Imports - commodities

food and live animals, machinery and equipment, chemicals

Imports - partners

UAE 15.5%, China 11.8%, India 8.4%, Saudi Arabia 7.3%, Kuwait 5.4%, US 4.1% (2008)

Currency

Yemeni rial (YER)

Currency code

YER

Exchange rates

Yemeni rials (YER) per US dollar - 203.05 (2009), 199.76 (2008), 199.14 (2007), 197.18 (2006), 192.67 (2005)

Fiscal year

Calendar year