Brunei Map

• This small, wealthy economy is a mixture of foreign and domestic entrepreneurship, government regulation, welfare measures, and village tradition. Crude oil and natural gas production account for nearly half of its GDP. Substantial income from overseas investment supplements income from domestic production. The government provides for all medical services and subsidizes rice and housing.

• Brunei's leaders are very concerned that steadily increased integration in the world economy will undermine internal social cohesion although it became a more prominent player by serving as chairman for the 2000 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum. Stated plans for the future include upgrading the labour force, reducing unemployment, strengthening the banking and tourism sectors, and, in general, further widening the economic base.

• The national airline, Royal Brunei, is trying to make Brunei a hub for international travel between Europe and Australia/New Zealand, and also has services to major Asian destinations. Brunei is increasingly importing from other countries.

• With its traditional ties with the United Kingdom, it became the 49th member of the Commonwealth immediately on the day of its independence on 1 January 1984. As its first initiatives toward improved regional relations, Brunei joined ASEAN on January 7, 1984, becoming the sixth member. It later joined the United Nations at the 39th Session of the United Nations General Assembly and became a full member on 21 September 1984 as a means to achieve recognition of its sovereignty and full independence from the world community. As it is an Islamic country, Brunei Darussalam became a full member of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (now the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation) in January 1984 at the Fourth Islamic Summit held in Morocco.

• After its accession to the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC) in 1989, Brunei hosted the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in November 2000 and the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in July 2002. As for other economic ties, Brunei Darussalam became an original member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) since it came into force in 1 January 1995, and is a major player in BIMP-EAGA which was formed during the Inaugural Ministers’ Meeting in Davao, Philippines on March 24, 1994.

• Brunei is recognized by every nation in the world. It shares a close relationship particularly with the Philippines and other nations such as Singapore. In April 2009, Brunei and the Philippines signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that seeks to strengthen the bilateral cooperation of the two countries in the fields of agriculture and farm-related trade and investments.

• The official language of the nation is Melayu Brunei (Brunei Malay), the official standardized form of the Malay language used in Brunei. Brunei Malay is quite divergent from standard Malay and the rest of the Malay dialects and is mostly mutually unintelligible. English and Chinese are also spoken. Bahasa Rojak, often spoken by the media and the public, is known as a "mixed language" and considered detrimental to normal Malay. Other languages spoken include Kedayan, Tutong, Murut, Dusun and Iban.

• English is also widely spoken and there is a relatively large expatriate community with significant numbers of British and Australian citizens.

• Brunei has a constitutional sultanate. It has a legal system based on English common law, although Islamic shariah law supersedes this in some cases.

• The political system in the country is governed by the constitution and the tradition of the Malay Islamic Monarchy, the concept of “Melayu Islam Beraja” (MIB). The three components of MIB cover Malay culture, Islamic religion and the political framework under the monarchy.

• Under Brunei's 1959 constitution, His Majesty Paduka Seri Baginda Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah is the head of state with full executive authority, including emergency powers, since 1962. The Sultan's role is enshrined in the national ideology known as Melayu Islam Beraja (MIB), or Malay Muslim Monarchy. The country has been under hypothetical martial law since Brunei Revolt of 1962. The Royal family retains a venerated status within the country.

• Brunei is a southeast Asian country consisting of two unconnected parts with the total area of 5,765 square kilometres . It has 161 kilometres (100 mi) of coastline next to the South China sea, and it shares a 381 kilometre (237 mi) border with Malaysia. It has 500 square kilometres (193 sq mi) of territorial waters, and an 200 nm exclusive economic zone.

• 77% of the population lives in the eastern part of Brunei, while only about 10,000 live in the mountainous south eastern part (the district of Temburong). The total population of Brunei Darussalam is approximately 408,000 (July 2010) of which around 150,000 live in the capital Bandar Seri Begawan. Other major towns are the port town of Muara, the oil producing town of Seria and its neighboring town, Kuala Belait. In the Belait district, the Panaga area is home to large numbers of expatriates due to Royal Dutch Shell and British Army housing and recreational facilities.

• Most of Brunei is within the Borneo lowland rain forests ecoregion that covers most of the island but there are areas of mountain rain forests inland.

• The climate of Brunei is tropical equatorial. The average annual temperature is 26.1 °C (79.0 °F), with the April–May average of 24.7 °C (76.5 °F) and the October–December average of 23.8 °C (74.8 °F).