Kuwait

From Gothpoodle

• Population: 9.3 million
• Aspects: Very Stable, Fifth Wave

The emirate of Kuwait is the wealthiest member of the Islamic Caliphate. The average standard of living is very high, with even the non-citizen population having access to the full range of Fifth Wave technologies. Kuwaiti citizens themselves are among the wealthiest humans anywhere. Although the petroleum industry has declined, Kuwait still has a vibrant economy based on banking, advanced electronics, land reclamation and nanotech industries. The emir is a constitutional monarch, with most power in the hands of a vigorous (and very contentious) national parliament.

Kuwait was once notable for its large non-citizen population; in 2000 over two-thirds of the population were immigrant workers, mostly from poorer Muslim nations. Today Kuwait continues to import labor, but it also employs a very large number of bioroids and advanced cybershells. Kuwaiti society has often experienced tension between the citizen and labor classes; this tension has grown in recent years with the appearance of an underground bioroid-liberation movement.