Bir Tawil and Halai'b, officially the Kingdom of Bir Tawil and Halai'b (Arabic: Mamlaka Bil Tawil wa Halai'b, is a country located in the Sahara, with the Red Sea dominating the country's only coastline. The country's capital is known as Tawil (sometimes referred to as Tawil City). With a population of 27.8 million, Bir Tawil and Halai'b is the 51st most populous country in the world.
The area was mostly uninhabited throughout most of history, however, members of the Ababda and Bishari tribes used to pass through the region, and a few small towns in Halai'b began to form in the late 20th century.
During the land claim conflict encompassing Halai'b between Egypt and Sudan, a major war took place in early 2015 in the deserts. Following the war, the UN declared the area to be Terra nullius, and it remained that status for a few months, following which billionaire brothers Arif Hossain and Malik Hossain bought the area. Following investments from many other organizations and countries and permission from the Egyptian government, they began the construction of a major canal system streching from the Nile, all the way to the coastal plains of Halai'b. The creation of the system took 4 years, during which many new towns and cities sprung up in the now more green delta-like areas. The only exception was Oasis Governorate, which mostly relied on an oasis system that exists below much of the governorate.
In 2020, the country's first census recorded a population of 650,991 people. Following this, a major explosion in population occurred as massive immigration and huge rapid construction of cities occurred throughout the country. In the 2025 census, the population was 2.5 million, and in the 2030 census, the population reached 5.5 million. Population growth continued to increase, as in the 2035 census, the population reached 11.2 million. It reached a further 17.4 million on the 2040 census, and 23.8 million in the 2045 census. The current population, as counted by the 2050 census, stands at 27.8 million.
According to the World Bank, Bir Tawil and Halai'b has the second highest economy in both Sahara and Africa. In 2021, Bir Tawil and Halai'b transformed into a liberalized free-trade economy, subsequently resulting in the country being one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. Having a growth rate of 20.775%, Bir Tawil and Halai'b is the world's third-largest by economic growth. The growth was spurred by tourism, construction, clean energy, and the movement of industries from mainly material to mainly service-based and manufacturing, although the kingdom is still a significant player in the world’s brick, cement, rods, glass, and concrete markets. Gold, Oil, Salt, and Freshwater exports are also significant. the country has the sixth-highest HDI, standing at 0.950.
Administrative divisions[]
Bir Tawil and Halai'b are composed of 3 regions (mintiq), which are the first-level administrative divisions. Regions are then divided into 14 governorates (muhafaza), which are then further divided into cities (madinah). Cities are then further divided into suburbs (dahiah).