Saudi Arabia Export Plan

Saudi Arabia

US Cosmetics Packaging Technology

By: Olufadeke Ogunlana

Term Paper/Country Export Plan

International Business 4850 – 51

Dr. Zafar A. Bokhari

Country Information

The cultural setting of Saudi Arabia is Arab and Wahhabi Islam, and features many elements from historical ritual and folk culture such as dance and music. Traditional values and cultural mores are adapted into legal prohibitions, even for non-Muslims who are forbidden by law from practicing their faith inside the kingdom. Alcoholic beverages are prohibited as are pork products. Women may not ride a bicycle, drive a car, or even sell make-up to other women. Saudi Arabia is well known for its unique way of life which in its own way preserves its centuries old heritage.

Saudi Arabia is located in the Middle East between the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea. It borders Jordan, Iraq, and Kuwait to the north, Yemen to the south, and Oman, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Qatar to the east. The country, which is divided into 13 provinces, is composed primarily of desert. Each region has a governor appointed by the king. With a land area of about 1.96 million square kilometers (756,981 square miles), Saudi Arabia is about one-fourth the size of the continental United States. Riyadh, the capital, is located in the central eastern part of the country.

The population of Saudi Arabia was estimated at 22,023,506 in July of 2000, a figure growing at about 3.3 percent a year. Saudi nationals account for close to 75 percent of the population. The remaining residents, nearly 6 million people, are expatriates comprised primarily of foreign workers. About 90 percent of Saudi nationals are Arabs. The rest of the indigenous populations, according to CIA statistics, are Afro-Asian. In 2000, the birth rate stood at 37.47 per 1,000 populations, compared with a death rate of 6.02 per 1,000. According to a Saudi census taken in the early 1990s, a little over 50 percent of the...