Kazakhstan (2001) | Reunion (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 oblystar (singular - oblysy) and 3 cities (qala, singular - qalasy)*; Almaty, Almaty*, Aqmola (Astana), Aqtobe, Astana*, Atyrau, Batys Qazaqstan (Oral), Bayqongyr*, Mangghystau (Aqtau; formerly Shevchenko), Ongtustik Qazaqstan (Shymkent), Pavlodar, Qaraghandy, Qostanay, Qyzylorda, Shyghys Qazaqstan (Oskemen; formerly Ust'-Kamenogorsk), Soltustik Qazaqstan (Petropavl), Zhambyl (Taraz; formerly Dzhambul)
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses); in 1995 the Governments of Kazakhstan and Russia entered into an agreement whereby Russia would lease for a period of 20 years an area of 6,000 sq km enclosing the Baykonur space launch facilities and the city of Bayqongyr (Baykonyr, formerly Leninsk) |
none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
26.73% (male 2,271,866; female 2,200,078) 15-64 years: 66.03% (male 5,358,535; female 5,688,550) 65 years and over: 7.24% (male 412,761; female 799,513) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 29.8% (male 120,147/female 114,589)
15-64 years: 64% (male 248,895/female 255,156) 65 years and over: 6.2% (male 19,847/female 28,950) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain (mostly spring wheat), cotton; wool, livestock | sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn |
Airports | 449 (2000 est.) | 2 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
28 over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 14 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
421 over 3,047 m: 11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 45 914 to 1,523 m: 101 under 914 m: 246 (2000 est.) |
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Area | total:
2,717,300 sq km land: 2,669,800 sq km water: 47,500 sq km |
total: 2,517 sq km
land: 2,507 sq km water: 10 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than four times the size of Texas | slightly smaller than Rhode Island |
Background | Native Kazakhs, a mix of Turkic and Mongol nomadic tribes who migrated into the region in the 13th century, were rarely united as a single nation. The area was conquered by Russia in the 18th century and Kazakhstan became a Soviet Republic in 1936. During the 1950s and 1960s agricultural "Virgin Lands" program, Soviet citizens were encouraged to help cultivate Kazakhstan's northern pastures. This influx of immigrants (mostly Russians, but also some other deported nationalities) skewed the ethnic mixture and enabled non-Kazakhs to outnumber natives. Independence has caused many of these newcomers to emigrate. Current issues include: developing a cohesive national identity; expanding the development of the country's vast energy resources and exporting them to world markets; and continuing to strengthen relations with neighboring states and other foreign powers. | The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration, supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians, gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route. |
Birth rate | 17.3 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 18.9 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$3.1 billion expenditures: $3.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues: $554.7 million
expenditures: $554.7 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (1998) |
Capital | Astana; note - the government moved from Almaty to Astana in December 1998 | name: Saint-Denis
geographic coordinates: 20 52 S, 55 28 E time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | continental, cold winters and hot summers, arid and semiarid | tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry (May to November), hot and rainy (November to April) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked); note - Kazakhstan borders the Aral Sea, now split into two bodies of water (1,070 km), and the Caspian Sea (1,894 km) | 207 km |
Constitution | adopted by national referendum 30 August 1995; first post-independence constitution was adopted 28 January 1993 | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Kazakhstan conventional short form: Kazakhstan local long form: Qazaqstan Respublikasy local short form: none former: Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form: Department of Reunion
conventional short form: Reunion local long form: none local short form: Ile de la Reunion former: Bourbon Island |
Currency | tenge (KZT) | - |
Death rate | 10.61 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.49 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $12.5 billion (2000 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Richard H. JONES embassy: 99/97A Furmanova Street, Almaty, Republic of Kazakhstan 480091 mailing address: American Embassy Almaty, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-7030 telephone: [7] (3272) 63-39-21, 50-76-23, 50-76-27 (emergency number) FAX: [7] (3272) 63-38-83, 50-76-24 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Kanat SAUDABAYEV chancery: 1401 16th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 232-5488 FAX: [1] (202) 232-5845 consulate(s): New York |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $409.6 million (1995) | $NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France (2001 est.) |
Economy - overview | Kazakhstan, the second largest of the former Soviet republics in territory, possesses enormous fossil fuel reserves as well as plentiful supplies of other minerals and metals. It also is a large agricultural - livestock and grain - producer. Kazakhstan's industrial sector rests on the extraction and processing of these natural resources and also on a growing machine-building sector specializing in construction equipment, tractors, agricultural machinery, and some defense items. The breakup of the USSR in December 1991 and the collapse of demand for Kazakhstan's traditional heavy industry products resulted in a short-term contraction of the economy, with the steepest annual decline occurring in 1994. In 1995-97, the pace of the government program of economic reform and privatization quickened, resulting in a substantial shifting of assets into the private sector. The Caspian Pipeline Consortium agreement to build a new pipeline from western Kazakhstan's Tengiz oil field to the Black Sea increases prospects for substantially larger oil exports in several years. Kazakhstan's economy again turned downward in 1998 with a 2% decline in GDP due to slumping oil prices and the August financial crisis in Russia. The recovery of international oil prices in 1999, combined with a well-timed tenge devaluation and a bumper grain harvest, pulled the economy out of recession in 2000. Astana has embarked upon an industrial policy designed to diversify the economy away from overdependence on the oil sector by developing light industry. | The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but services now dominate. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to one-third of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrated the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France. |
Electricity - consumption | 44.132 billion kWh (1999) | 1.107 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 200 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 3.077 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 44.36 billion kWh (1999) | 1.19 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
87.12% hydro: 12.65% nuclear: 0.23% other: 0% (1999) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Vpadina Kaundy -132 m highest point: Khan Tangiri Shyngy (Pik Khan-Tengri) 6,995 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m |
Environment - current issues | radioactive or toxic chemical sites associated with its former defense industries and test ranges are found throughout the country and pose health risks for humans and animals; industrial pollution is severe in some cities; because the two main rivers which flowed into the Aral Sea have been diverted for irrigation, it is drying up and leaving behind a harmful layer of chemical pesticides and natural salts; these substances are then picked up by the wind and blown into noxious dust storms; pollution in the Caspian Sea; soil pollution from overuse of agricultural chemicals and salination from poor infrastructure and wasteful irrigation practices | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
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Ethnic groups | Kazakh (Qazaq) 53.4%, Russian 30%, Ukrainian 3.7%, Uzbek 2.5%, German 2.4%, Uighur 1.4%, other 6.6% (1999 census) | French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian |
Exchange rates | tenge per US dollar - 145.09 (January 2001), 142.13 (2000), 119.52 (1999), 78.30 (1998), 75.44 (1997), 67.30 (1996) | euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV (chairman of the Supreme Soviet from 22 February 1990, elected president 1 December 1991) head of government: Prime Minister Kazymzhomart TOKAYEV (since 2 October 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 10 January 1999, a year before it was previously scheduled (next to be held NA 2006); note - President NAZARBAYEV's previous term had been extended to 2000 by a nationwide referendum held 30 April 1995; prime minister and first deputy prime minister appointed by the president election results: Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV reelected president; percent of vote - Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV 81.7%, Serikbolsyn ABDILDIN 12.1%, Gani KASYMOV 4.7%, other 1.5% note: President NAZARBAYEV expanded his presidential powers by decree: only he can initiate constitutional amendments, appoint and dismiss the government, dissolve Parliament, call referenda at his discretion, and appoint administrative heads of regions and cities |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Pierre-Henry MACCIONI (since 28 August 2006)
head of government: President of the General Council Nassimah DINDAR (since NA March 2004) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
Exports | $8.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | oil 40%, ferrous and nonferrous metals, machinery, chemicals, grain, wool, meat, coal | sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3% |
Exports - partners | EU 23%, Russia 20%, China 8% (1999) | France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | sky blue background representing the endless sky and a gold sun with 32 rays soaring above a golden steppe eagle in the center; on the hoist side is a "national ornamentation" in gold | unofficial, local flag designed to emphasize solidarity among the people of Reunion; the field is divided vertically with three narrow stripes of blue, white, and red along the hoist edge representing the French national flag; the remainder of the field is divided diagonally into four triangles colored (clockwise from the hoist side) blue, golden yellow, red, and green; in the center, the apexes of the triangles are surmounted by a white disk; the only official flag is the national flag of France |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $85.6 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10% industry: 30% services: 60% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 8%
industry: 19% services: 73% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 10.5% (2000 est.) | 2.5% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 48 00 N, 68 00 E | 21 06 S, 55 36 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; Russia leases approximately 6,000 sq km of territory enclosing the Baykonur Cosmodrome | this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean |
Highways | total:
NA km paved: 150,000 km (these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather) (2000) unpaved: NA km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.7% highest 10%: 26.3% (1996) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | significant illicit cultivation of cannabis and limited cultivation of opium poppy and ephedra (for the drug ephedrone); limited government eradication program; cannabis consumed largely in the CIS; used as transshipment point for illicit drugs to Russia, North America, and Western Europe from Southwest Asia; developing heroin addiction problem | - |
Imports | $6.9 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery and parts, industrial materials, oil and gas, vehicles | manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Russia 37%, US, Uzbekistan, Turkey, UK, Germany, Ukraine, South Korea (1999) | France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2004) |
Independence | 16 December 1991 (from the Soviet Union) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 14.9% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | oil, coal, iron ore, manganese, chromite, lead, zinc, copper, titanium, bauxite, gold, silver, phosphates, sulfur, iron and steel, nonferrous metal, tractors and other agricultural machinery, electric motors, construction materials | sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction |
Infant mortality rate | 59.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 7.63 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.37 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.85 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 13.4% (2000 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | AsDB, CCC, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | InOC, UPU, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | NA | - |
Irrigated land | 22,000 sq km (1996 est.) | 120 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (44 members); Constitutional Council (7 members) | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 8.8 million (1997) | 299,000 (2002) |
Labor force - by occupation | industry 27%, agriculture 23%, services 50% (1996) | agriculture: 13%
industry: 12% services: 75% (2000) |
Land boundaries | total:
12,012 km border countries: China 1,533 km, Kyrgyzstan 1,051 km, Russia 6,846 km, Turkmenistan 379 km, Uzbekistan 2,203 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
12% permanent crops: 11% permanent pastures: 57% forests and woodland: 4% other: 16% (1996 est.) |
arable land: 13.94%
permanent crops: 1.59% other: 84.47% (2005) |
Languages | Kazakh (Qazaq, state language) 40%, Russian (official, used in everyday business) 66% | French (official), Creole widely used |
Legal system | based on civil law system | French law |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (47 seats; 7 senators are appointed by the president; other members are popularly elected, two from each of the former oblasts and the former capital of Almaty, to serve six-year terms) and the Majilis (67 seats; the addition of 10 "Party List" seats brings the total to 77; members are popularly elected to serve five-year terms); note - with the oblasts being reduced to 14, the Senate will eventually be reduced to 37; a number of Senate seats come up for reelection every two years
elections: Senate - (indirect) last held 17 September 1999 (next to be held NA 2001); Majilis - last held 10 and 24 October and 26 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; 16 seats up for election in 1999, candidates nominated by local councils; Majilis - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Otan 23, Civic Party 13, Communist Party 3, Agrarian Party 3, People's Cooperative Party 1, independents 34; note - most independent candidates are affiliated with parastatal enterprises and other pro-government institutions |
unicameral General Council (49 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA); Regional Council - last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held in 2010) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council (second round) - percent of vote by party - PCR 44.9%, UMP 32.8%, PS-Greens 22.3%; seats by party - PCR 27, UMP 11, PS-Greens 7 note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held in 2001 (next to be held in 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PRC 1, UDF 1, UMP 1; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held in 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 3, PS 1, independent 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
63.29 years male: 57.87 years female: 68.97 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 74.18 years
male: 70.78 years female: 77.75 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 99% female: 96% (1989 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 88.9% male: 87% female: 90.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central Asia, northwest of China | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar |
Map references | Commonwealth of Independent States | World |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | - | registered in other countries: 1 (Bahamas 1) (2006) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | General Purpose Forces (Army), Air Force, Border Guards, Navy, Republican Guard | no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $322 million (FY99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.5% (FY99) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
4,509,179 (2001 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
3,598,859 (2001 est.) |
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Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
163,628 (2001 est.) |
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National holiday | Republic Day, 25 October (1990) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun:
Kazakhstani(s) adjective: Kazakhstani |
noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)
adjective: Reunionese |
Natural hazards | earthquakes in the south, mudslides around Almaty | periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano |
Natural resources | major deposits of petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, manganese, chrome ore, nickel, cobalt, copper, molybdenum, lead, zinc, bauxite, gold, uranium | fish, arable land, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -6.43 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 2,850 km; refined products 1,500 km; natural gas 3,480 km (1992) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Agrarian Party [Romin MADENOV]; Alash [Soverkazhy AKATAYEV]; AZAMAT Movement [Petr SVOIK, Murat AUEZOV, and Galym ABILSIITOV, cochairmen]; Civic Party [Azat PERUASHEV, first secretary]; Communist Party or KPK [Serikbolsyn ABDILDIN, first secretary]; Forum of Democratic Forces [Nurbulat MASANOV, Deputy Chairman of the Republican People's Party of Kazakhstan (RNPK); Amirzhan KOSANOV, RNPK activist; Seidakhmet KUTTYKADAM, Orleu Movement; cochairmen]; Labor and Worker's Movement [Madel ISMAILOV, chairman]; Orleu Movement [Seidakhmet KUTTYKADAM]; Otan [Sergei TERESCHENKO, chairman]; Pensioners Movement or Pokoleniye [Irina SAVOSTINA, chairwoman]; People's Congress of Kazakhstan of NKK [Olzhas SULEIMENOV, chairman]; People's Cooperative Party [Umirzak SARSENOV]; People's Unity Party or PUP [Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV]; Republican People's Party of Kazakhstan or RNPK [Akezhan KAZHEGELDIN] | Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Elie HOARAU]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Michel VERGOZ]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Kazakhstan International Bureau on Human Rights [Yevgeniy ZHOVTIS, executive director] | NA |
Population | 16,731,303 (July 2001 est.) | 787,584 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 35% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.03% (2001 est.) | 1.34% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Aqtau (Shevchenko), Atyrau (Gur'yev), Oskemen (Ust-Kamenogorsk), Pavlodar, Semey (Semipalatinsk) | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 60, FM 17, shortwave 9 (1998) | AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001) |
Radios | 6.47 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
14,400 km in common carrier service; does not include industrial lines broad gauge: 14,400 km 1.520-m gauge (3,299 km electrified) (1997) |
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Religions | Muslim 47%, Russian Orthodox 44%, Protestant 2%, other 7% | Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.52 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
service is poor; equipment antiquated domestic: intercity by landline and microwave radio relay; mobile cellular systems are available in most of Kazakhstan international: international traffic with other former Soviet republics and China carried by landline and microwave radio relay; with other countries by satellite and by the Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic cable; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat |
general assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis
domestic: modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network international: country code - 262; radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.818 million (1997) | 300,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 11,202 (1997) | 579,200 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 12 (plus nine repeaters) (1998) | 35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | extends from the Volga to the Altai Mountains and from the plains in western Siberia to oases and desert in Central Asia | mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast |
Total fertility rate | 2.07 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.45 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 13.7% (1998 est.) | 31% (2002) |
Waterways | 3,900 km
note: on the Syrdariya (Syr Darya) and Ertis (Irtysh) rivers |
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