Brunei (in full: Negara Brunei Darussalam) is a small country in Asia, located on the island of Borneo. The country is approximately the size of two Dutch provinces and has more than 400,000 inhabitants. The capital is Bandar Seri Begawan.

Geography

According to ABBREVIATIONFINDER, Brunei is located on the north of the island of Borneo, on the South China Sea. The country consists of two separate parts that are not directly adjacent to each other, a larger western part, and a smaller eastern part called Temburong. The country measures a maximum of 130 by 110 kilometers, but the actual distances are shorter because of the jagged borders. Brunei has a land border of 381 kilometers with Malaysia. Much of the country is covered with tropical rainforest, inland there are also low mountains. The highest point is the 1,850 meter high Bukit Pagon, which is much higher than most land in Brunei. The country has a tropical climate, the average maximum temperature throughout the year is between 30 and 32°C.

Demographics

The population of Brunei grew from about 50,000 in 1950 to about 400,000 in 2010. See Brunei population density. A large part of the inhabitants live in and near the capital Bandar Seri Begawan. There are also some smaller towns on the coast. The interior is sparsely populated. The inhabitants of Brunei are largely Malay, which is also the most widely spoken language. The Chinese make up about 10% of the population, in addition there are many small population groups. There are also many expats because of the oil industry. English is therefore relatively widely spoken.

Economy

Brunei’s economy is almost entirely focused on oil and gas extraction, which accounts for about 90% of GDP. Despite its small size, Brunei is one of the largest gas exporters in the world. The large income from oil and gas ensures that the government can provide generous subsidies to the population. The country has to import a lot of products because of its small area and one-sided industry. The GDP per capita is at $77,000, one of the highest in the world, although the nominal GDP per capita is significantly lower at around $27,000.

History

In the Middle Ages, the Brunei Empire covered almost all of Borneo, except for the impenetrable parts in the interior. In the 19th century the Brunei Empire started to crumble, it had to cede large parts of northern Borneo to the British. Brunei became a British protectorate in 1888. The country was occupied by Japan during World War II. It was not until 1984 that Brunei became independent from the United Kingdom. Since the 1990s, Brunei has had a fast-growing economy due to the large income from oil and gas.

Road Network

Brunei’s road network is well developed, but is non-existent in the interior areas, which are virtually unpopulated. There are various highway routes, with the route along the north coast from Kuala Belait via Seria to Bandar Seri Begawan being the longest. This highway has 2×2 lanes and consists of a number of parts that together are 85 kilometers long. After that, there are two more highway sections in Bandar Seri Begawan itself, plus the Temburong Bridge, which brings the total highway network to 146 kilometers. In Brunei, as in neighboring Malaysia, people drive on the left. The capital Bandar Seri Begawan is quite extensive, and has a fairly large underlying road network. Files are therefore not very common. Tolls have to be paid for some bridges. Brunei’s largest road project was the construction of theTemburong Bridge connecting both parts of the country. The bridge will open in 2020.

Road numbering

There is no road numbering in Brunei.

Signage

Not much is known about Brunei’s signage. This consists of green signs with white letters, but exit signage is on white signs with black letters. Bowl plates are blue with white letters. Signage is also in English and European road signs are used. Distances are displayed along the road on kilometer markers.