Owing to economic diversification, the non-oil and gas sector was the major contributor to the economy in 2009. Also, the gas sector was the single largest contributor to the economy, accounting for almost a quarter of the country’s GDP.

Gross domestic product (GDP) at PPP was USD 116.98 billion in 2008, which rose to USD 128.26 billion in 2009 reflecting a 9.64% increase.

(Source: qix.gov.qa)

The total GDP at current price has declined from QR 402.99 billion in 2008 to QR 357.86 billion in 2009 and reached to QR 208.3 billion by third quarter of 2010.

(Source: qix.gov.qa)

The annual GDP growth rate has witnessed a steep decline from 37.1% in 2008 to -11.2% in 2009.

GDP per capita at PPP

(Source: econstats)

Gross domestic product (GDP) per capita at PPP was USD 80760.27 in 2008 which declined to USD 78260.41 in 2009 reflecting a reduction of 3.09% over a year.

Income tax rate

There are no income tax deductions from salaries and wages paid in Qatar.

Corporate tax rate

Taxes are not levied on Qataris and other Gulf Nationals on the businesses they own. However, taxes are levied on foreign nationals and companies for the profit they generate. Moreover, Qatari partners are not charged taxes on their share in business.

The government reduced the corporate tax to 10% with effect from January 2010. Earlier, Qatar had a progressive corporate tax rate ranging from 10% to 35%.

(Source: heritage.org)

Inflation rate

(Source: World Bank)

The inflation in Qatar was on a constant rise till 2008 registering inflation rate of 15.1% on annual consumer prices which remarkably declined to -4.9% in 2009 indicating a notable control over the inflation over a year.

Foreign direct investment

In 2009, FDI inflow in the country was recorded at USD 8.72 million, an increase of about 112% over previous year. In 2008, foreign direct investment in the country was USD 4.1 million.

(Source: UNCTAD)

Banking sector assets (QR Million)

(Source: qcb.gov.qa)

Reserve requirements

Reserves equivalent to a certain percentage of average total deposits (including both local and foreign currency) are held by the Qatar Central Bank (QCB) in Qatari Riyals. At present the required reserve ratio is 4.75% which has remained unchanged since April 15, 2008.

(Source: qcb.gov.qa)

Non Performing Loan Ratios

(Source: qcb.gov)

South Africa’s economy is based on manufacturing, mining and financial services. The macro-economic indicators like interest rates and the strength of the Rand of the country are critical for the economic progress of the nation.

Gross domestic product (GDP)

The country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at current prices in 2010 amounted to ZAR 2,662.76 billion, as compared to ZAR 2,395.97 billion in 2009. The nominal GDP grew by 11.3% in 2010, as compared to a growth of 5.36% in 2009.

(Source: National Statistics)

Major industries contributing to the GDP in terms of their nominal value in 2010 were:

•  Finance, real estate and business services – 21.2%
• General government – 16.1%
• Manufacturing – 14.6%

Real GDP growth

The real GDP growth in 2010 was 2.8%, as compared to a decrease of 1.7% in 2009. The real GDP growth was stable in from 2005 to 2007. Howver, in 2008, the GDP growth dipped to 3.6% and then further to -1.7% in 2009.

(Source: National Statistics)

GDP per capita, PPP

South Africa’s GDP per capita in terms of PPP in 2010 was projected to be USD 4,489.1, as compared to USD 4,490.8 in 2009.

(Source: africaneconomicoutlook.org)

Gross national income (GNI) per capita

The country’s GNI per capita PPP in 2010 was USD 9,812.1 as compared to USD 9,603.3 for the year 2009.

(Source: UNDP)

At the end of third quarter of 2010, total exports of goods and services in South Africa amounted to ZAR 189,887 million, while the imports were valued at ZAR 193,356 million. Hence, the country reported a trade deficit of ZAR 3,469 million.

(Source: Central Bank)

Tax rates

Personal income tax is levied at rates ranging from 18% to 40%.

(Source: South Africa Revenue Service)

(Source: South Africa Revenue Service)

Inflation rate

Inflation rate in South Africa at the end of December 2010 was 3.5%. The average inflation rate for 2010 was 4.3%, as compared to 7.1% in 2009.

(Source: National Statistics)

Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow

The FDI inflow in 2009 amounted to USD 5,696 million, as compared to USD 9,006 million in 2008.

(Source: UNCTAD)

Banking sector assets

The table below displays the assets of the South African Reserve Bank, the country’s central bank.

 (Source: Central Bank)

Labour Force

In 2009, the state of Qatar had a labour force of 1,442,649 persons. Of the total labour force, 1,265,432 were economically active. Non-Qataris form about 90.0% of the labour force in the country.

(Source:qix.gov.qa)

Labour Force Participation

About 1% of the economically active population are involved in agriculture and related occupations. 44% of the active labour force is involved in construction.

(Source: qix.gov.qa)

Unemployment Rate

The unemployed population in 2009 was 0.3% of economically active population. The unemployment rate was higher for Qatari nationals at 2.3%.

(Source: qcb.gov.qa)

Minimum Wage

There is no specific minimum wage regulation in the state of Qatar. The expatriate workers are provided with accommodation facility, travelling allowance and various benefits at the end of their service.

(Source: investinqatar.com.qa)

The total population of South Africa by 2010 was estimated to be 49.99 million, increasing at a rate of about 1.36% over the previous year. In the period between 2005 and 2010, the country’s population grew at an average rate of 1%.

(Source: National Statistics, UN)

Representation of the gender in the country is almost equal. In 2009, females accounted for 51.3% of the total population.

(Source: worldbank.org)

(Source: worldbank.org)

About 31% of the total population is aged 14 years, and below and 7.6% of the total population are above 60 years of age.

(Source: National Statistics)

The average life expectancy in South Africa for males is 53.3 years and for females it is 55.2 years (2009).

The mortality rate of infants (per 1,000 live births) was registered at 47 in 2010. While, the crude death rate was 13.9%.

(Source: National Statistics)

(Source: National Statistics)

The number births as well as deaths decreased constantly over recent years in the country. In 2010, the total number of births was 1,066,401, which is 1.14% lower than 2009. While the number of deaths increased from 637,301 in 2009 to 654,360 in 2010, or 2.67%.

(Source: National Statistics)

Migration and urbanisation

International migrant stock till mid 2010 was recorded at 1.86 million people, or approximately 3.7% of the entire population.

(Source: UN)

Urban population in the country grew at an annual rate of 1.4% between 2005 and 2010. For the same period, the rural population witnessed a decline of 0.7%. Furthermore, about 60% of the total population lives in urban areas.

(Source: UN)

Ethnic environment

Ethnic groups in South Africa include:

• Africans
• Whites
• Coloured
•  Indians/Asians

About 80% of the population are Christians. Other religions followed in the country include Islam, Hinduism, and Judaism.

(Source: SouthAfrica.info)

Human development index (HDI)

The country ranks 110^th out of 182 countries on the Human Development Index (HDI) 2010 conducted by the United Nations. The HDI provides a composite measure of three dimensions of human development: living a long and healthy life (measured by life expectancy), being educated (measured by adult literacy and gross enrolment in education) and having a decent standard of living (measured by purchasing power parity, PPP, income). 

(Source: UNDP)

The literacy rate of males and females in the 15-24 age group for 2009 was 89% and 93.1% respectively.

(Source: National Statistics)

Schooling is compulsory between the ages of 7 and 15. Though there are 11 official languages in the country, schools and universities generally use either English or Afrikaans as the language of instruction.

In 2009, the country had 32,103 established public and registered independent education institutions. Of these, 25,906 were ordinary schools and 6,197 were other educational institutions, such as public ABET centres, ECD centres, public FET colleges, special schools and public HE institutions.

The total spending on education in 2010/11 amounted to ZAR 165 billion and is the government’s largest sector of spending. The budget allocation for higher education is projected to be ZAR 21.3 billion in 2011/12 as compared to ZAR 15.3 billion in 2008/09.

(Source: info.gov.za, education.gov.za, National Statistics)

Healthcare

Healthcare system in South Africa is primarily dependent on the public sector, although the private sector is expanding at a rapid pace. Majority of the population uses primary healthcare, which is offered free by the state. The standard of healthcare in country is considered to be amongst the best in the African continent.

The Department of Health plans to establish a National Health Insurance (NHI) system. The NHI system is expected to provide funding and create a service-based health care system.

About 11% of the country’s total budget is spent on public health.

(Source: info.gov.za, southafrica.info)

Education/literacy rate

Educational development in the country has led to the involvement of both males and females at all educational levels. Qatar has a high literacy rate. The adult literacy rate in the country is 89%. As per the 2010 census, 4.4% of the Qatari population above 10 years of age were illiterate. The corresponding figure for non-Qataris was 3.5%.

(Source: imf.org, qix.gov.qa)

The country supports the establishment of private educational institutions and provides various kind of support in legal and supervision aspects.

The government is focusing on developing an advanced educational system, as part of the economic diversification plan. The state expenditure on education in the 2010-11 fiscal is estimated at USD 4.8 billion. Of the estimated total spend, a major share is expected to be spent on buildings and educational facilities.

(Source: projectsmiddleeast.com)

Healthcare resources

The country’s healthcare sector is well developed, with most advanced medical equipments, healthcare centres and hospitals with highly qualified staffs. According to the general secretariat of the GCC ministers of health’s reports, the State of Qatar has the region’s lowest maternal mortality rate.

The Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) is the non-profit public health care provider located in Doha. The government is encouraging the private sector to provide healthcare to the public. The private medical service providers represent 67% of the country’s health service providers.

(Source: qatarembassy)

Ports

The major seaports in the country include Doha Commercial Seaport, Ras Laffan Industrial Seaport and Mesaieed Commercial and Industrial Seaport. The Ports and Sea Customs Department is a member of International Maritime Organization, International Association of Ports and Harbours and the Arab Academy for Maritime Transport.

(Source: mofa.gov.qa)

Airports

Doha International Airport is the largest airport in the country. There is also an airport in the town of Al Gariyeh.

(Source:aircraft charter world)

Telecommunications networks

Internet Users:

(Source: internetworldstats.com)

Computer/internet users (2010 census)

(Source: qix.gov.qa)

Qatar had 2,472,100 mobile subscriptions in 2009 compared to 490,300 subscriptions in 2004. The number of mobile subscriptions grew at a Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 38.2%. There were 175.4 mobile subscriptions per 100 inhabitants.

(Source: ITU)

In 2009, the country had 285,300 fixed telephone lines, reflecting a notable increase of 49.44%, compared to 190,900 in 2004. The number of fixed telephone lines grew at a compounded annual growth rate of 8.4%. However, in 2009, there were 20.24 fixed telephone lines per 100 inhabitants, indicating a decline compared to 23.95 lines per 100 inhabitants in 2004.

(Source:ITU)