United Arab Emirates
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
A. THE COUNTRY
The United Arab Emirates is a country in Asia of desert and mountains on
the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, comprised of seven emirates
(states). The Sheikh of Abu Dhabi is president of the Supreme Council,
which rules the country (a Federal constitutional monarchy). While
there are federal laws, each emirate also has some of its own
regulations. Due to large oil reserves, the United Arab Emirates
possesses one of the most developed economies in the Middle East. Much
has been spent in order to diversify into commercial, IT, industrial and
entertainment spheres. Weaning itself from over dependence on migrant
labourers is a major challenge. Over investment – particularly in the
emirate of Dubai – created massive debts.
B. THE PEOPLE
The population is ~4,708,000 and the official language Arabic.
Due to the massive presence of expatriate workers, it is difficult to
obtain accurate figures, so the following are estimates.
~56% are Arab, ~23.2% South Asian, ~20.8% Other (Filipino, Iranian,
European, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan)
C. RELIGIONS AND CHRISTIANITY/PENTECOSTALISM
Islam is the state religion, with a Sunni Majority and a small Shi’a
minority. There is high levels of religious freedom for an Arab state,
but proselytism is still illegal. Arrests, imprisonment and deportation
still occur for those who evangelize or distribute Christian literature
unwisely. The following religious figures are estimates and includes
expatriates and nationals.
~67.65% are Muslim, ~15.5% Hindu, ~8.55% claim to be Christian, ~3.7%
Buddhist, ~2.4% Other, ~1.6%% Non-religious, ~0.6% Baha’i.
In the Christian category:
~4.82% are Catholic, ~2.22% Orthodox, ~0.69% Protestant, ~0.36%
Independent, ~0.26% Anglican, ~0.2% Unaffiliated.
Evangelicals represent ~1.3% of the population.
Charismatics represent ~1% and of those ~0.1% are Pentecostals.
Donna Siemens
References:
http://en.wikipedia.org
Operation World, Jason Mandryk. Colorado Springs: Biblica Publishing, 2010.