Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan 

Geography                 Economy                 Defense Forces
 

People                    Transportation          Government



Communications            History      	          Travel

GEOGRAPHY

Location

Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakstan

Area

Land Boundaries

Total 3,736 km, Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km

Coastline

0 km

Note: Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km)

Maritime Claims

None; landlocked

International Disputes

Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined

Climate

Subtropical desert

Terrain

Flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in west
lowest point: Sarygamysh Koli -110 m
highest point: Ayrybaba 3,139 m

Natural Resources

Land Use

Irrigated Land

12,450 sq km (1990)

Environment

Note: Landlocked

PEOPLE

Population

4,149,283 (July 1996 est.)
4,075,316 (July 1995 est.)

Age Structure

0-14 Years

39% (male 826,637; female 804,385) (July 1996 est.)
40% (male 821,550; female 798,620) (July 1995 est.)

15-64 Years

56% (male 1,154,415; female 1,188,173) (July 1996 est.)
56% (male 1,128,844; female 1,155,392) (July 1995 est.)

65 Years and Over

5% (male 65,447; female 110,226) (July 1996 est.)
4% (male 65,486; female 105,424) (July 1995 est.)

Population Growth Rate

1.82% (1996 est.)
1.97% (1995 est.)

Birth Rate

29.12 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
29.93 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death Rate

8.89 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
7.34 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net Migration Rate

-2.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
-2.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.59 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.97 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant Mortality Rate

81.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
68.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life Expectancy at Birth

Total Fertility Rate

3.62 children born/woman (1996 est.)
3.72 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality

Ethnic Divisions

Religions

Languages

Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7%

Literacy

Age 15 and over that can read and write (1989)

Labor Force

1.642 million (January 1994)

By occupation:

GOVERNMENT

Names

Digraph

TX

Type

Republic

Capital

Ashgabat

Administrative Divisions

5 welayatlar (singular - welayat): Ahal Welayaty (Ashgabat), Balkan Welayaty (Nebitdag), Dashhowuz Welayaty (formerly Tashauz), Lebap Welayaty (Charjew), Mary Welayaty

Note: Names in parentheses are administrative centers when name differs from welayat name

Independence

27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union)

National Holiday

Independence Day, 27 October (1991)

Constitution

Adopted 18 May 1992

Legal System

Based on civil law system

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive Branch

Legislative Branch

Under 1992 constitution there are two parliamentary bodies, a unicameral People's Council (Halk Maslahaty - having more than 100 members and meeting infrequently) and a 50-member unicameral Assembly (Majlis)

Assembly (Majlis)

Elections last held 11 December 1994 (next to be held NA); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (50 total) Democratic Party 45, other 5; note - all 50 preapproved by President NIYAZOV

Judicial Branch

Supreme Court

Political Parties and Leaders

Democratic Party of Turkmenistan, Saparmurat NIYAZOV; Party for Democratic Development, Durdymurat HOJA-MUHAMEDOV, chairman; Agzybirlik, Nurberdy NURMAMEDOV, cochairman, Hubayberdi HALLIYEV, cochairman

Note: Formal opposition parties are outlawed; unofficial, small opposition movements exist underground or in foreign countries

Member of

CCC, CIS, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, IDB, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NACC, OIC, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer)

Flag

Green field, including a white crescent and five white stars in the upper left corner to the right of the carpet guls and a vertical stripe on the hoist side, with a claret vertical stripe in between containing five white, black, and orange carpet guls (an assymetrical design used in producing rugs) associated with five different tribes;
This assymetrical design has recently been changed.
View old version
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ECONOMY

Overview

Turkmenistan is largely desert country with nomadic cattle raising, intensive agriculture in irrigated oases, and huge gas and oil resources. One-half of its irrigated land is planted in cotton making it the world's tenth largest producer. It also has the world's fifth largest reserves of natural gas and substantial oil resources. Until the end of 1993, Turkmenistan had experienced less economic disruption than other former Soviet states because its economy received a boost from higher prices for oil and gas and a sharp increase in hard currency earnings. In 1994, Russia's refusal to export Turkmen gas to hard currency markets and mounting debts of its major customers in the former USSR for gas deliveries contributed to a sharp fall in industrial production and caused the budget to shift from a surplus to a slight deficit. The economy remained depressed through 1995 while inflation soared. Furthermore, with an authoritarian ex-communist regime in power and a tribally based social structure, Turkmenistan has taken a cautious approach to economic reform, hoping to use gas and cotton sales to sustain its inefficient economy. For 1996, Turkmenistan will face continuing constraints on its earnings because of its customers' inability to pay for their gas and a below average cotton crop in 1995. Turkmenistan is working hard to open new gas export channels through Iran and Turkey, but these will take many years to realize.

National Product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $11.5 billion (1995 estimate as extrapolated from World Bank estimate for 1994), $13.1 billion (1994 estimate as extrapolated from World Bank estimate for 1992)

National Product Real Growth Rate

-10% (1995 est.)
-24% (1994 est.)

National Product Per Capita

$2,820 (1995 est.)
$3,280 (1994 est.)

Inflation Rate (consumer Prices)

25% per month (1994)

Unemployment Rate

NA

Budget

Exports

$1.9 billion to states outside the FSU (1995)
$382 million to states outside the FSU (1994)

Commodities:

Partners:

Imports

$777 million from states outside the FSU (1995)
$304 million from states outside the FSU (1994)

Commodities:

Partners:

External Debt

$400 million (of which $275 million to Russia) (1995 est.)

Industrial Production

Growth rate -7% (1995), -25% (1994)

Electricity

Industries

Agriculture

Cotton, grain, animal husbandry

Illicit Drugs

Illicit cultivator of cannabis and opium poppy; mostly for CIS consumption; limited government eradication program; used as transshipment point for illicit drugs from Southwest Asia to Western Europe

Economic Aid

Currency

Turkmenistan introduced its national currency, the manat, on 1 November 1993

Exchange Rates

Manats per US$1 - manats per US$1 - 2,400 (January 1996)
note: government established a unified rate in mid-January 1996

Fiscal Year

Calendar year

TRANSPORTATION

Railroads

Highways

Pipelines

Crude oil 250 km; natural gas 4,400 km

Ports

Turkmenbashi (formerly Krasnowodsk)

Airports

COMMUNICATIONS

Telephone System

NA telephones; poorly developed

Radio

Television

DEFENSE FORCES

Branches

Army, Air and Air Defense, Republic Security Forces (internal and border troops), National Guard

Manpower Availability

Males age 15-49 1,024,398; males fit for military service 834,803; males reach military age (18) annually 41,697 (1995 est.)

Defense Expenditures

4.5 billion manats, 3.0% of GDP (1995); note - conversion of defense expenditures into US dollars using the current exchange rate could produce misleading results

History
World Atlas