Quick Facts

Geography
Area: 1,960,582 sq km; slightly more than one-fifth the size of the US
Capital: Riyadh
Major Cities: Jiddah, Mecca, At Ta�if, Medina, Ad Dammam, Dhahran
Geographic Features: mostly uninhabited, sandy desert
Climate: harsh, dry desert with great temperature extremes

Population
Total: 26,417,599 (note: includes 5,576,076 non-nationals)
Annual Growth Rate: 2.31%
Major Languages: Arabic
Ethnic Makeup: Arab 90%, Afro-Asian 10%
Religions: Muslim 100%

Health
Life Expectancy at Birth: 75.46 years
Infant Mortality Rate: 13.24 deaths/1,000 live births

Education
Adult Literacy Rate: 78.8%

Government
Type: monarchy
Independence Date: 23 September 1932
Head of State/Government: King and Prime Minister ABDULLAH bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud (since the death of King FAHD bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud on 1 August 2005); First Deputy Prime Minister and Crown Prince SULTAN bin Abdul Aziz
Political Parties: none 

Economy
Currency: Saudi riyal (SAR)
GDP: $310.2 billion
Per Capita GDP: $12,000
GDP Annual Growth Rate: 5%
Inflation Rate: 0.8%
Unemployment Rate: 25% (unofficial estimate)
Natural Resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, copper
Exports: $113 billion
Imports: $36.21 billion

(Source: CIA Factbook, 2005; www.populations.com, Middle East Institute)