Bahrain

Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of, is an island country in the Persian Gulf. The sovereign state comprises a small archipelago centered around Bahrain Island, situated between the Qatar peninsula and the north eastern coast of Saudi Arabia, to which it is connected by the 25-kilometre (16 mi) King Fahd Causeway.

Bahrain’s population is 1,234,561 (c. 2010), including 666,172 non-nationals. It is 765.3 square kilometers (295.5 sq mi) in size, making it the third-smallest nation in Asia after the Maldives and Singapore.

Bahrain had the first post-oil economy in the Persian Gulf. Since the late 20th century, Bahrain has invested in the banking and tourism sectors. Many large financial institutions have a presence in Manama, the country’s capital. It has a high Human Development Index and is recognized by the World Bank as a high-income economy.

Bahrain is a member of the United Nations, Non-Aligned Movement, Arab League, Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Gulf Cooperation Council.