Conservation of Forests

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is the largest country in Arabian Peninsula and has a strong oil based economy. KSA is said to contain more than twenty percent of the world proven crude oil reserve making it one of the most important countries in the world in terms of supply of energy to the rest of the world.  KSA is also ranked as the largest exporter of petroleum and plays and important role in OPEC.  With the petroleum sector accounting for more than eighty percent of the country revenues, it can be said that the country is dependant on oil but it has been able to diversify its revenue base. It is also important to note that there are more than 6.4 million foreign workers currently working in KSA and this high number of expatriate has helped the country to diversify their revenue base. KSA has also provided cordial environment for growth of the private sector which contribute more than forty percent of the country GDP (FedEX, 2008). The country is no t only important to the world for supply of energy but it is also important to other Muslims nations as it is home to Tow Holy Mosques including Medina and Mecca.  It is an energy superpower alongside Russia owing to her contribution to world energy supply.

Populations

Despite her oil wealth KSA is not densely population. However the country is one of the most diverse societies in the world with a high number of expatriates (Owen, 2006).

(a) Total

According to July 2009 estimates, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has about 28,686,633 people (CIA Fact Book, 2009).  This population however includes more than 5,576,076 non-nationals or expatriates from all over the world who work in different sectors in the country (CIA Fact Book, 2009).

Growth rates

KSA has a lower growth rate compared to other countries in the region. According to 2009 estimates, growth rate currently stands at 1.848% ranking the country at 49th position in the world (CIA Fact Book, 2009).

Number of live births

The birth rate is also not quite high and it is currently estimated at 28.55 births per 1,000 populations ranking the country at 52nd position in the whole world (CIA Fact Book, 2009).

Birth rates

The death rate is very low and as per July 2009 estimates it stood at 2.47 deaths per 1,000 populations ranking her at an amazing 219th position in the world (CIA Fact Book, 2009).

(b) Distribution
Age

The age structure shows that majority of the people (59.5%) are aged between 15 and 64 years. On the other hand children below the age of 14 years make up 38% of the population while those who are 65 years and above comprise 2.5% of the population (CIA Fact Book, 2009).  This can be well reflected in the above high birth rates and low death rates.  The following graph shows age structure:

Sex

At birth and up to 15 years, sex ratio is estimated at 1.05 male(s) per female (CIA Fact Book, 2009). However this ratio increase to 1.29 male(s) per female between the age of 15 and 64 years and finally it drops to 1.06 male(s) per female from 65 years and above.  In the whole population 2009 population estimate show that sex ratio stands at 1.18 male(s) per female (CIA Fact Book, 2009).

Geographic

KSA is one the most urbanized countries in the region. It is estimated that 82% of the population lives in urban areas. The rate of urbanization is 2.5% and is mainly driven by the rising industrialization and oil based economy (CIA Fact Book, 2009).

Migration rates and patterns

Unlike many countries in the world, KSA has a negative migration rate.  According to the 2009 estimates, the net rate of migration was -7.6 migrant(s) per 1,000 populations (CIA Fact Book, 2009).

Ethnic groups

There are two major ethnic groups in the country. Arab ethic group makes up more than 90% of the population while Afro-Asian makes up 10% of the population (CIA Fact Book, 2009).

Economic statistics and activity
(a) Gross National Product (GNP or GDP)

Total

According to 2008 economic results, the country GDP was estimated at 1.6 billion (CIA Fact Book, 2009). This is one of the largest GDP among the oil producing countries.

Rate of growth

Despite the current economic crisis, KSA recorded an impressive GDP growth rate of 4.2% (CIA Fact Book, 2009). This was an increase from 3.4% growth rate in 2007 and 3.2% in 2006 (CIA Fact Book, 2009).

(b) Personal income per capital

In 2008, GDP per capita (PPP) was estimated at ,500.  This was another increase from the earlier ,100 in 2007 and ,800 in 2006 (CIA Fact Book, 2009).

(c) Average family income

The average family income in the country is sometime difficult to come up due to varying data. Across all data, it shows that average family has an income of ,000 – 15, 000 a month (Sohrab, 2008).

(c) Distribution o wealth

Income classes

Like in many societies, there are three main classes in Saudi Arabia. There is the lower class, the middle class and the upper class. The Upper class earns above ,000 a month as a net family income (Sohrab, 2008). Middle class earns between ,000-19,000 net family incomes while the lower class earns less than ,000 a month (Sohrab, 2008). However this is just an estimation and there is no official data from the government.

Proportion of population in each class

Due to her growing economy it is estimated that majority of the population in the country fall under the middle class.  46% of the population falls under the middle class. 35% of the population falls under the lower class while 19% of the population falls under the upper class (Sohrab, 2008). Again, there is no government official data to verify this and this has been estimated by market research studies.

Is the distribution distorted?

This distribution may be distorted since it does not rhyme with the trends in other countries. This data shows a higher percentage of middle class and upper class which is not commonly in most developing countries like Saudi Arabia (Abir, 2007).

(d) Mineral resources

Saudi Arabia is well endowed in mineral resources.  It holds 20% of the known oil reserves in the world.  It has 7.167 trillion cu m proved reserves for natural gas and 264.3 billion bbl of proved oil reserves (CIA Fact Book, 2009).  The country is also endowed in iron ore, gold and copper but these do not make substantial contribution to the economy (McHale, 2008).  The country has 1.67% of its total land mass arable.

(e) Surface transportation

Mode

The main modes of transport in the country include air transport, pipeline, railways, roadways, and water transport (CIA Fact Book, 2009).

Availability

The above mentioned modes of transport are available within the country. KSA has 217 airports, 80 paved and 137 unpaved. The country also has 9 heliports (CIA Fact Book, 2009).  Pipeline is used in transportation of gas and oil. The country has 212 km condensate pipeline, 1,880 km gas pipeline, 1,183 km liquid petroleum pipeline, 4,239 km oil pipeline and 1,148 km pipeline for refined products (CIA Fact Book, 2009).  Saudi Arabia has 1,392 km of railways and 221,327 km of roadways of which 47,529 km is paved and 173,843 km unpaved. Major ports and terminals in the country include Ad Dammam, Al Jubayl, Jiddah, and Yanbu’ al Sinaiyah (CIA Fact Book, 2009)