North Yemen became independent of the Ottoman Empire in 1918. The British, who had set up a protectorate area around the southern port of Aden in the 19th century, withdrew in 1967 from what became South Yemen. Three years later, the southern government adopted a Marxist orientation. The massive exodus of hundreds of thousands of Yemenis from the south to the north contributed to two decades of hostility between the states. The two countries were formally unified as the Republic of Yemen in 1990. A southern secessionist movement and brief civil war in 1994 was quickly subdued. In 2000, Saudi Arabia and Yemen agreed to a delimitation of their border. Fighting in the northwest between the government and Huthi rebels, a group seeking a return to traditional Zaydi Islam, began in 2004 and has since resulted in six rounds of fighting - the last ended in early 2010 with a cease-fire that continues to hold. The southern secessionist movement was revitalized in 2008 when a popular socioeconomic protest movement initiated the prior year took on political goals including secession. Public rallies in Sana'a against then President SALIH - inspired by similar demonstrations in Tunisia and Egypt - slowly built momentum starting in late January 2011 fueled by complaints over high unemployment, poor economic conditions, and corruption. By the following month, some protests had resulted in violence, and the demonstrations had spread to other major cities. By March the opposition had hardened its demands and was unifying behind calls for SALIH's immediate ouster. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in late April 2011, in an attempt to mediate the crisis in Yemen, proposed an agreement in which the president would step down in exchange for immunity from prosecution. SALIH's refusal to sign an agreement led to heavy street fighting and his injury in an explosion in June 2011. The UN Security Council passed Resolution 2014 in October 2011 calling on both sides to end the violence and complete a power transfer deal. In late November 2011, SALIH signed the GCC-brokered agreement to step down and to transfer some of his powers to Vice President Abd Rabuh Mansur HADI. Following elections in February 2012, won by HADI, SALIH formally transferred his powers. In accordance with the GCC initiative, Yemen launched a National Dialogue to discuss key constitutional, political, and social issues in mid-March 2013.

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

15 00 N, 48 00 E

Middle East

total: 527,968 sq km
country comparison to the world: 50
land: 527,968 sq km
water: 0 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)

slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming

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

1,906 km

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

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

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

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

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

arable land: 2.2%
permanent crops: 0.55%
other: 97.25% (2011)

6,801 sq km (2004)

2.1 cu km (2011)

total: 3.57 cu km/yr (7%/2%/91%)
per capita: 162.4 cu m/yr (2005)

sandstorms and dust storms in summer
volcanism: limited volcanic activity; Jebel at Tair (Jabal al-Tair, Jebel Teir, Jabal al-Tayr, Jazirat at-Tair) (elev. 244 m), which forms an island in the Red Sea, erupted in 2007 after awakening from dormancy; other historically active volcanoes include Harra of Arhab, Harras of Dhamar, Harra es-Sawad, and Jebel Zubair, although many of these have not erupted in over a century

limited natural freshwater resources; inadequate supplies of potable water; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

strategic location on Bab el Mandeb, the strait linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, one of world's most active shipping lanes

noun: Yemeni(s)
adjective: Yemeni

predominantly Arab; but also Afro-Arab, South Asians, Europeans

Arabic (official)

Muslim (Islam - official) including Shaf'i (Sunni) and Zaydi (Shia), small numbers of Jewish, Christian, and Hindu

25,338,458 (July 2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 48

0-14 years: 42% (male 5,433,121/female 5,235,891)
15-24 years: 21.1% (male 2,720,793/female 2,640,652)
25-54 years: 30.6% (male 3,974,091/female 3,797,543)
55-64 years: 3.7% (male 446,293/female 490,628)
65 years and over: 2.6% (male 315,141/female 354,135) (2013 est.)

total dependency ratio: 75.6 %
youth dependency ratio: 70.6 %
elderly dependency ratio: 5.1 %
potential support ratio: 19.8 (2013)

total: 18.5 years
male: 18.4 years
female: 18.6 years (2013 est.)

2.5% (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 31

31.63 births/1,000 population (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 39

6.64 deaths/1,000 population (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 147

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 75

urban population: 32.3% of total population (2011)
rate of urbanization: 4.78% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)

SANAA (capital) 2.229 million (2009)

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2013 est.)

19.2
note: median age at first birth among women 25-29 (1997 est.)

200 deaths/100,000 live births (2010)
country comparison to the world: 57

total: 51.93 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 39
male: 56.33 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 47.31 deaths/1,000 live births (2013 est.)

total population: 64.47 years
country comparison to the world: 175
male: 62.39 years
female: 66.65 years (2013 est.)

4.27 children born/woman (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 34

27.7% (2006)

5.5% of GDP (2011)
country comparison to the world: 122

0.2 physicians/1,000 population (2010)

0.7 beds/1,000 population (2010)

0.1% (2001 est.)
country comparison to the world: 139

12,000 (2001 est.)
country comparison to the world: 91

NA

degree of risk: high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria
water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2013)

14.5% (2008)
country comparison to the world: 121

43.1% (2003)
country comparison to the world: 3

5.2% of GDP (2008)
country comparison to the world: 65

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 65.3%
male: 82.1%
female: 48.5% (2011 est.)

total: 9 years
male: 11 years
female: 7 years (2005)

total number: 1,334,288
percentage: 23 % (2006 est.)

total: 33.7%
country comparison to the world: 22
male: 26%
female: 74% (2010)

conventional long form: Republic of Yemen
conventional short form: Yemen
local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Yamaniyah
local short form: Al Yaman
former: Yemen Arab Republic [Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen] and People's Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen]

republic

name: Sanaa
geographic coordinates: 15 21 N, 44 12 E
time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

20 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah) and 1 municipality*; Abyan, 'Adan (Aden), Ad Dali', Al Bayda', Al Hudaydah, Al Jawf, Al Mahrah, Al Mahwit, Amanat al 'Asimah (Sanaa City)*, 'Amran, Dhamar, Hadramawt, Hajjah, Ibb, Lahij, Ma'rib, Raymah, Sa'dah, San'a' (Sanaa), Shabwah, Ta'izz

22 May 1990 (Republic of Yemen was established with the merger of the Yemen Arab Republic [Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen] and the Marxist-dominated People's Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen]); note - previously North Yemen became independent in November 1918 (from the Ottoman Empire) and became a republic with the overthrow of the theocratic Imamate in 1962; South Yemen became independent on 30 November 1967 (from the UK)

Unification Day, 22 May (1990)

adopted by referendum 16 May 1991 (following unification); amended several times, last in 2009; note - in early 2013, the Yemeni Government launched a National Dialogue to seek reforms and recommendations for a new constitution (2013)

mixed legal system of Islamic law, Napoleonic law, English common law, and customary law

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

18 years of age; universal

chief of state: President Abd Rabuh Mansur HADI (Field Marshal) (since 25 February 2012)
head of government: Prime Minister Muhammad Salim BA SINDWAH (since 27 November 2011)
cabinet: on 27 November 2011, Vice President HADI requested Interim Prime Minister Muhammad Salim BA SINDWAH to form a new government following the resignation of President SALIH on 24 November 2011

elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term based on constitution; however a special election was held on 21 February 2012 to remove Ali Abdallah SALIH based on a GCC-mediated deal during the political crisis of 2011 (next election to be held in 2014); vice president appointed by the president but position is vacant; prime minister appointed by the president
election results: Abd Rabuh Mansur HADI elected as a consensus president with about 50% popular participation; no other candidates

bicameral legislature consisting of a Shura Council (111 seats; members appointed by the president) and House of Representatives (301 seats; members elected by popular vote in single-member constituencies to serve six-year terms)
elections: last held on 27 April 2003 (scheduled April 2009 election postponed)
election results: House of Representatives percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - GPC 238, Islah 47, YSP 6, Nasserite Unionist Party 3, National Arab Socialist Ba'th Party 2, independents 5

highest court(s): Supreme Court (consists of the president of the Court, 2 deputies, and nearly 50 judges; court organized into constitutional, civil, commercial, family, administrative, criminal, military, and appeals scrutiny divisions)
judge selection and term of office: judges appointed by the Supreme Judicial Council, chaired by the president of the republic and consisting of 10 high-ranking judicial officers; judges appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 65
subordinate courts: appeal courts; district or first instance courts; commercial courts

General People's Congress or GPC [Ali Abdallah SALIH, Abd Rabuh Mansur HADI]
note: there are at least seven more active political parties

Muslim Brotherhood
other: conservative tribal groups; Huthis, southern secessionist groups; al-Qa'ida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)

AFESD, AMF, CAEU, CD, EITI (compliant country), FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAS, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)

chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Adel Ali Ahmed AL-SUNAINI
chancery: 2319 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 965-4760
FAX: [1] (202) 337-2017

chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Karen SASAHARA (since July 2013)
embassy: Sa'awan Street, Sanaa
mailing address: P. O. Box 22347, Sanaa
telephone: [967] (1) 755-2000 ext. 2153 or 2266
FAX: [967] (1) 303-182

three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; the band colors derive from the Arab Liberation flag and represent oppression (black), overcome through bloody struggle (red), to be replaced by a bright future (white)
note: similar to the flag of Syria, which has two green stars in the white band, and of Iraq, which has an Arabic inscription centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt, which has a heraldic eagle centered in the white band

golden eagle

name: "al-qumhuriyatu l-muttahida" (United Republic)
lyrics/music: Abdullah Abdulwahab NOA'MAN/Ayyoab Tarish ABSI
note: adopted 1990; the music first served as the anthem for South Yemen before unification with North Yemen in 1990

Yemen is a low income country that is highly dependent on declining oil resources for revenue. Petroleum accounts for roughly 25% of GDP and 70% of government revenue. Yemen has tried to counter the effects of its declining oil resources by diversifying its economy through an economic reform program initiated in 2006 that is designed to bolster non-oil sectors of the economy and foreign investment. In October 2009, Yemen exported its first liquefied natural gas as part of this diversification effort. In January 2010, the international community established the Friends of Yemen group that aims to support Yemen's efforts toward economic and political reform. In 2012, the Friends of Yemen pledged over $7 billion in assistance to Yemen. The Yemeni Government also endorsed a Mutual Accountability Framework to facilitate the efficient implementation of donor aid. The unrest that began in early 2011 caused GDP to plunge more than 15% in 2011, and about 2% in 2012. Availability of basic services, including electricity, water, and fuel, has improved since the transition, but progress toward achieving more sustainable economic stability has been slow and uneven. Yemen continues to face difficult long-term challenges, including declining water resources, high unemployment, and a high population growth rate.

$58.27 billion (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 90
note: data are in 2012 US dollars

$34.9 billion (2012 est.)

2.4% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 125

$2,300 (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 187
note: data are in 2012 US dollars

11.9% of GDP (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 119

household consumption: 84.3%
government consumption: 13.2%
investment in fixed capital: 18.8%
investment in inventories: -4.4%
exports of goods and services: 21%
imports of goods and services: -33%

agriculture: 8.7%
industry: 35.7%
services: 55.6% (2012 est.)

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

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

-1% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 146

7.158 million (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 64

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

35% (2003 est.)
country comparison to the world: 185

45.2% (2003)

lowest 10%: 2.9%
highest 10%: 30.8% (2005)

37.7 (2005)
country comparison to the world: 74

revenues: $8.461 billion
expenditures: $10.97 billion (2012 est.)

24.2% of GDP (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 133

-7.2% of GDP (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 186

41.8% of GDP (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 83

calendar year

9.9% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 200

NA%

23% (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 11

$5.142 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 100

$10.59 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 105

$9.576 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 100

$NA

$-985 million (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 117

$7.57 billion (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 103

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

China 37.2%, Thailand 15.7%, South Korea 11.4%, India 10.7%, UAE 5.5% (2012)

$11.36 billion (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 92

food and live animals, machinery and equipment, chemicals

China 15.5%, UAE 14.7%, India 9.6%, Saudi Arabia 6.9%, Kuwait 5.2% (2012)

$6.158 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 85

$7.419 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 107

$NA

Yemeni rials (YER) per US dollar -

7.292 billion kWh (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 106

5.515 billion kWh (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 112

0 kWh (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 151

0 kWh (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 151

1.334 million kW (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 118

100% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 2

0% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 207

0% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 151

0% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 143

156,500 bbl/day (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 43

175,200 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 31

0 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 145

3 billion bbl (1 January 2013 es)
country comparison to the world: 31

86,330 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 78

177,000 bbl/day (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 61

14,330 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 78

59,050 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 62

9.62 billion cu m (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 43

950 million cu m (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 90

8.75 billion cu m (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 29

0 cu m (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 82

478.5 billion cu m (1 January 2013 es)
country comparison to the world: 33

23.75 million Mt (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 80

1.1 million (2012)
country comparison to the world: 72

13.9 million (2012)
country comparison to the world: 60

general assessment: since unification in 1990, efforts have been made to create a national telecommunications network
domestic: the national network consists of microwave radio relay, cable, tropospheric scatter, GSM and CDMA mobile-cellular telephone systems; fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity remains low by regional standards
international: country code - 967; landing point for the international submarine cable Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG); satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 2 Arabsat; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia and Djibouti (2006)

state-run TV with 2 stations; state-run radio with 2 national radio stations and 5 local stations; stations from Oman and Saudi Arabia can be accessed (2007)

.ye

33,206 (2012)
country comparison to the world: 105

2.349 million (2009)
country comparison to the world: 71

57 (2013)
country comparison to the world: 83

total: 17
over 3,047 m: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 9
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2013)

total: 40
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 16
under 914 m:

gas 641 km; liquid petroleum gas 22 km; oil 1,370 km (2013)

total: 71,300 km
country comparison to the world: 67
paved: 6,200 km
unpaved: 65,100 km (2005)

total: 5
country comparison to the world: 126
by type: chemical tanker 2, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 1
registered in other countries: 14 (Moldova 4, Panama 4, Sierra Leone 2, Togo 1, unknown 3) (2010)

major seaport(s): Aden, Al Hudaydah, Al Mukalla

the International Maritime Bureau reports offshore waters in the Gulf of Aden are high risk for piracy; numerous vessels, including commercial shipping and pleasure craft, have been attacked and hijacked both at anchor and while underway; crew, passengers, and cargo are held for ransom; the presence of several naval task forces in the Gulf of Aden and additional anti-piracy measures on the part of ship operators reduced the incidence of piracy in that body of water by more than half in 2010

Land Forces, Naval and Coastal Defense Forces (includes Marines), Air and Air Defense Force (al-Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Yemeniya), Border Guards, Stategic Reserve Forces (2013)

18 is the legal minimum age for voluntary military service; no conscription; 2-year service obligation (2012)

males age 16-49: 5,652,256
females age 16-49: 5,387,160 (2010 est.)

males age 16-49: 4,056,944
females age 16-49: 4,116,895 (2010 est.)

male: 287,141
female: 277,612 (2010 est.)

4.02% of GDP (2012)
country comparison to the world: 33

a Coast Guard was established in 2002

Saudi Arabia has reinforced its concrete-filled security barrier along sections of the fully demarcated border with Yemen to stem illegal cross-border activities

refugees (country of origin): 5,221 (Ethiopia) (2012); 229,447 (Somalia) (2013)
IDPs: 306,964 (conflict in Sa'ada governorate; clashes between AQAP and government forces) (2013)