THE STATE OF BRUNEI DARUSSALAM

General information: Brunei (the official name Negara Brunei Darussalam is translated from Malay as 'The Nation of Brunei, the Abode of Peace') is situated in the northern part of the island of   in Southeast Asia. It shares a border with the Malaysian state of Sarawak and is washed by the South China Sea in the north.

Area: 5,800 square kilometres, 70 percent of which is covered by rainforest.

Population: 436,600, including Malays (65.8 percent), Chinese (10.2 percent), indigenous tribes of Kalimantan (Iban, Melanau, Dayaks and others --8 percent). Urban population accounts for 77.2 percent.

Official language: Malay; English and Chinese are widely used too.

Official religion: The Sunni branch of Islam. Sunni Muslims account for 74 percent of the population. Other religions: Buddhism (11 percent), Christianity (Catholics) 9 percent.

Capital: Bandar Seri Begawan (over 241,000).

National holiday: Independence Day, February 23, 1984.

Political system: Absolute monarchy. Head of state ,Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah (since 1967), who also serves as Prime Minister, Minister of Finance, Minister of Defence and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The Sultan is the spiritual leader of the country's Muslims. Crown Prince Al-Muhtadee Billah, the Sultan's eldest son, is the Senior Minister at the Prime Minister's Office.

Brunei's executive bodies include the Privy Council (deals with matters concerning clemency, amendments to the Constitution as well as awards, titles and honours) and the Council of Succession.

Highest legislative body: The Legislative Council (parliament), a deliberative body with advisory functions under the head of state. In 2004, the Sultan of Brunei signed an amendment to the Constitution on the creation of an elected parliament. The Legislative Council consists of 33 members (including the head of state). These are cabinet ministers, senior state officials, clerics and businessmen appointed by the Sultan and nine directly-elected representatives from administrative areas (the new composition of the Legislation Council was approved by the Sultan's executive order on January 13, 2017). Speaker of the Legislative Council, Abdul Rahman bin Mohamed Taib (since February 2015).

 The Legislative Council holds annual sessions (March) to swear new members of parliament into office, hear reports by ministries and departments, approve the state budget for the next fiscal year.

Highest judicial body: The Supreme Court.  In addition, there are Muslim Shariah courts that normally deal with matters related to family law. In May 2014, the Shariah courts received greater authority under the law On the Shariah Courts Criminal Procedure Code signed in 2013.

Economy: Brunei's economy is characterised by a high degree of macro-economic stability:  GDP per capita – $30,000 (2016)[1], no inflation.

Unemployment stands at 6.9 percent. The country lacks labour resources and hires around 100,000 contract workers, predominantly from Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, India and Thailand.

The oil-and-gas industry is the backbone of Brunei's economy. It accounts for over 60 percent of GDP and 90 percent of state revenues. Key oil extraction partners in the form of joint ventures are the Anglo-Dutch Royal Dutch-Shell and French Total. Some projects involve the Malaysian Petronas and the US ConocoPhillips. There is a gas liquefying plant (a joint venture with Shell and Mitsubishi). 

The government's economic priorities are to diversify and modernise the economy, increase food self-sufficiency, attract more foreign investment, boost retail trade, develop the construction industry, transportation and tourism.

Agriculture is poorly developed, 80 percent of basic food products are imported.

External trade: In 2016 it stood at $9.2 billion. Top trade partners are Japan (39 percent), South Korea (12.5 percent), Australia (9.7 percent), India (9.2 percent), Thailand (6.4 percent) and Indonesia (5.8 percent). Key imports include machinery, food and chemicals. The chief sources of commodity imports are from ASEAN countries (51.8 percent), the United States (14.2 percent) and the European Union (9.1 percent).

Brunei's gold and currency reserves are estimated at $35 billion. The country has no external debt.

Currency: Brunei dollar (BND) is at par with and circulates in parallel with the Singapore dollar. $1 equals 1.43 BND, 1 EUR equals 1.55 BND (March 2017). 

Domestic policy: The internal political situation in Brunei is characterised by stability. The government has the support of the overwhelming majority of the population. The Sultan wields indisputable authority.

The government pays much attention to the social well-being of the population, encouraging charity and providing considerable funds for direct aid to the needy[2]. There is no income tax in Brunei. Medical services in state-run healthcare institutions are free for Brunei citizens. There are social housing construction programmes.

Given the traditional Islamic values and the introduction of Shariah Criminal Law in May 2014, there are numerous bans and restrictions in Brunei.

Foreign policy: Brunei stands for maintaining friendly relations with other countries on the principles of mutual respect for independence, sovereignty, equality and territorial integrity. It adheres to the principles of non-interference in the internal affairs of other states and promoting peace, security and stability in the region. Brunei is a member of the United Nations, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the British Commonwealth, the World Trade Organisation, the Non-Aligned Movement and the Asia Cooperation Dialogue and takes part in Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forums, East Asia summits, the Asia-Europe Meeting, the Trans-Pacific Partnership.  

Brunei maintains diplomatic relations with more than 170 states and has 43 diplomatic missions abroad (in all ASEAN member states, the largest Arab states, Russia, the United States, Canada, China, Britain, France, Germany). There are 29 foreign embassies in Bandar Seri Begawan.

Armed forces: Brunei' army was created on May 31, 1961, and consists of three branches, the Royal Land Forces, the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy.  The army was renamed, the Royal Brunei Armed Forces, in 1984 after the Sultanate obtained independence. In total, the armed forces comprise around 9,500 servicemen. The defence budget for 2017/2018 is $451.7 million, around 10 percent of GDP.

Troop contingents of the UK and Singapore are deployed in Brunei on a permanent basis. Brunei's servicemen are taking part in international peacekeeping missions in Lebanon and the Philippines.

 Culture: Cultural life is regulated by Islamic ideology. Music shows, performances, concerts are rarely held and usually coincide with important dates or events. Two months ahead of Ramadan (the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, during which fasting is observed from sunrise to sunset) and until its end, all entertainments cease.

Education: The adult literacy rate is 97.65 percent. The education system stipulates compulsory free nine-year education. There are state-run and private schools (261 in total). All schools have a uniform curricular with integrated Islamic education. Teaching is in Malay and English.  

Education in state-funded schools is free for Brunei citizens. The government encourages its citizens to receive higher education abroad and offers grants for university studies in Britain, Australia, the United States and Canada.

Media: Official and private media are controlled by the state. The Radio Television Brunei (RTB) state-owned company and a separate department at the Prime Minister's Office ensures television and radio broadcasting nationwide.

Main newspapers are Pelita Brunei (the government's official Malay-language newspaper, issued three times a week, circulates 40,000 copies), Media Permata (Malay-language daily, circulates 10,000 copies), Borneo Bulletin (English-language daily, circulates  25,000 copies, Sunday edition – 30,000 copies).

[1] GDP stands at $13 billion (2015).

2Tne needy in Brunei are people with an income of less than $1,100 a month.