Lithuania (2004) | Turkmenistan (2007) | |
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Administrative divisions | 10 counties (apskritys, singular - apskritis); Alytaus, Kauno, Klaipedos, Marijampoles, Panevezio, Siauliu, Taurages, Telsiu, Utenos, Vilniaus | 5 provinces (welayatlar, singular - welayat) and 1 independent city*: Ahal Welayaty (Anew), Ashgabat*, Balkan Welayaty (Balkanabat), Dashoguz Welayaty, Lebap Welayaty (Turkmenabat), Mary Welayaty
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 16.7% (male 309,736; female 294,129)
15-64 years: 68.4% (male 1,202,603; female 1,262,784) 65 years and over: 14.9% (male 184,145; female 354,502) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 34.7% (male 900,718/female 866,930)
15-64 years: 60.9% (male 1,537,638/female 1,567,049) 65 years and over: 4.4% (male 97,454/female 127,239) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish | cotton, grain; livestock |
Airports | 102 (2003 est.) | 28 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 28
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 14 (2003 est.) |
total: 22
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 11 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 74
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 67 (2003 est.) |
total: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 under 914 m: 4 (2007) |
Area | total: 65,200 sq km
land: NA sq km water: NA sq km |
total: 488,100 sq km
land: 488,100 sq km water: NEGL |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | slightly larger than California |
Background | Independent between the two World Wars, Lithuania was annexed by the USSR in 1940. On 11 March 1990, Lithuania became the first of the Soviet republics to declare its independence, but Moscow did not recognize this proclamation until September of 1991 (following the abortive coup in Moscow). The last Russian troops withdrew in 1993. Lithuania subsequently restructured its economy for integration into Western European institutions; it joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. | Annexed by Russia between 1865 and 1885, Turkmenistan became a Soviet republic in 1924. It achieved independence upon the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. Extensive hydrocarbon/natural gas reserves could prove a boon to this underdeveloped country if extraction and delivery projects were to be expanded. The Turkmenistan Government is actively seeking to develop alternative petroleum transportation routes to break Russia's pipeline monopoly. President for Life Saparmurat NIYAZOV died in December 2006, and Turkmenistan held its first multi-candidate presidential electoral process in February 2007. Gurbanguly BERDIMUHAMEDOW, a former NIYAZOV aide, emerged as the country's new president. |
Birth rate | 8.49 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 25.36 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $5.427 billion
expenditures: $5.742 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
revenues: $1.434 billion
expenditures: $1.386 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | Vilnius | name: Ashgabat (Ashkhabad)
geographic coordinates: 37 57 N, 58 23 E time difference: UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers | subtropical desert |
Coastline | 99 km | 0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km) |
Constitution | adopted 25 October 1992 | adopted 18 May 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Lithuania
conventional short form: Lithuania local long form: Lietuvos Respublika local short form: Lietuva former: Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Turkmenistan local long form: none local short form: Turkmenistan former: Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic |
Currency | litas (LTL) | - |
Death rate | 11.03 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 6.17 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.671 billion (2003 est.) | $2.4 billion to $5 billion (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Stephen D. MULL
embassy: 2600 Akmenu 6, Vilnius mailing address: American Embassy, Vilnius, PSC 78, Box V, APO AE 09723 telephone: [370] (5) 266 5500 FAX: [370] (5) 266 5510 |
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Richard E. HOAGLAND
embassy: No. 9 1984 Street (formerly Pushkin Street), Ashgabat, Turkmenistan 744000 mailing address: 7070 Ashgabat Place, Washington, DC 20521-7070 telephone: [993] (12) 35-00-45 FAX: [993] (12) 39-26-14 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Vygaudas USACKAS
chancery: 2622 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5860 FAX: [1] (202) 328-0466 consulate(s) general: Chicago and New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Meret Bairamovich ORAZOW
chancery: 2207 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-1500 FAX: [1] (202) 588-0697 |
Disputes - international | in May 2003, the Russian Parliament ratified the 1997 land and maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, which ratified the treaty in 1999, legalizing limits of former Soviet republic borders; both states also implement a simplified transit regime for Russian nationals transiting Lithuania to and from the Russian Kaliningrad coastal enclave; the Latvian Parliament has not ratified its 1998 maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, primarily due to concerns over oil exploration rights | cotton monoculture in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan creates water-sharing difficulties for Amu Darya river states; field demarcation of the boundaries with Kazakhstan commenced in 2005, but Caspian seabed delimitation remains stalled with Azerbaijan, Iran, and Kazakhstan due to Turkmenistan's indecision over how to allocate the sea's waters and seabed |
Economic aid - recipient | $228.5 million (1995) | $28.25 million from the US (2005) |
Economy - overview | Lithuania, the Baltic state that has conducted the most trade with Russia, has slowly rebounded from the 1998 Russian financial crisis. Unemployment remains high, still 10.7% in 2003, but is improving. Growing domestic consumption and increased investment have furthered recovery. Trade has been increasingly oriented toward the West. Lithuania has gained membership in the World Trade Organization and has moved ahead with plans to join the EU. Privatization of the large, state-owned utilities, particularly in the energy sector, is nearing completion. Overall, more than 80% of enterprises have been privatized. Foreign government and business support have helped in the transition from the old command economy to a market economy. | Turkmenistan is a largely desert country with intensive agriculture in irrigated oases and large gas and oil resources. One-half of its irrigated land is planted in cotton; formerly it was the world's 10th-largest producer. Poor harvests in recent years have led to an almost 50% decline in cotton exports. 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. Privatization goals remain limited. From 1998-2005, Turkmenistan suffered from the continued lack of adequate export routes for natural gas and from obligations on extensive short-term external debt. At the same time, however, total exports rose by an average of 15% per year from 2003-06, largely because of higher international oil and gas prices. In 2006, Ashgabat raised its natural gas export prices to its main customer, Russia, from $66 per thousand cubic meters (tcm) to $100 per tcm. Overall prospects in the near future are discouraging because of widespread internal poverty, a poor educational system, government misuse of oil and gas revenues, and Ashgabat's unwillingness to adopt market-oriented reforms. Turkmenistan's economic statistics are state secrets, and GDP and other figures are subject to wide margins of error. In particular, the rate of GDP growth is uncertain. President BERDIMUHAMEDOW's election platform included plans to build a gas line to China, to complete the AmuDarya railroad bridge in Lebap province, and to create special border trade zones in southern Balkan province - a hint that the new post-NIYAZOV government will work to create a friendlier foreign investment environment. |
Electricity - consumption | 8.683 billion kWh (2001) | 7.602 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 6.3 billion kWh (2001) | 2.918 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 1.389 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 14.62 billion kWh (2001) | 12.05 billion kWh (2005 est.) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Juozapines/Kalnas 292 m |
lowest point: Vpadina Akchanaya -81 m; note - Sarygamysh Koli is a lake in northern Turkmenistan with a water level that fluctuates above and below the elevation of Vpadina Akchanaya (the lake has dropped as low as -110 m)
highest point: Gora Ayribaba 3,139 m |
Environment - current issues | contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products and chemicals at military bases | contamination of soil and groundwater with agricultural chemicals, pesticides; salination, water logging of soil due to poor irrigation methods; Caspian Sea pollution; diversion of a large share of the flow of the Amu Darya into irrigation contributes to that river's inability to replenish the Aral Sea; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Lithuanian 80.6%, Russian 8.7%, Polish 7%, Belarusian 1.6%, other 2.1% | Turkmen 85%, Uzbek 5%, Russian 4%, other 6% (2003) |
Exchange rates | litai per US dollar - 3.0609 (2003), 3.677 (2002), 4 (2001), 4 (2000), 4 (1999) | Turkmen manat per US$ - 11,100 (2006) official rate
note: in recent years the unofficial rate has hovered around 24,000 to 25,000 Turkmen manats to the dollar |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Valdas ADAMKUS (since 12 July 2004)
head of government: Premier Algirdas Mykolas BRAZAUSKAS (since 3 July 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the nomination of the premier elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 13 June 2004 and 27 June 2004; premier appointed by the president on the approval of the Parliament election results: Valdas ADAMKUS elected president; percent of vote - Valdas ADAMKUS 52.2%, Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE 47.8% |
chief of state: President Gurbanguly BERDIMUHAMEDOW (since 14 February 2007); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Gurbanguly BERDIMUHAMEDOW (since 14 February 2007) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held on 11 February 2007 (next to be held in 2012) election results: Gurbanguly BERDIMUHAMEDOW elected president; percent of vote - Gurbanguly BERDIMUHAMEDOW 89.2% |
Exports | NA (2001) | 117,800 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
Exports - commodities | mineral products 23%, textiles and clothing 16%, machinery and equipment 11%, chemicals 6%, wood and wood products 5%, foodstuffs 5% (2001) | gas, crude oil, petrochemicals, cotton fiber, textiles |
Exports - partners | Switzerland 11.6%, Russia 10.1%, Germany 9.9%, Latvia 9.7%, UK 6.4%, France 5.1%, Denmark 4.7%, Estonia 4.3%, Sweden 4% (2003) | Ukraine 47.7%, Iran 16.4%, Azerbaijan 5.3% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red | green field with a vertical red stripe near the hoist side, containing five tribal guls (designs used in producing carpets) stacked above two crossed olive branches similar to the olive branches on the UN flag; a white crescent moon representing Islam with five white stars representing the regions or velayats of Turkmenistan appear in the upper corner of the field just to the fly side of the red stripe |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $40.88 billion (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6.1%
industry: 31.3% services: 62.6% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 17.7%
industry: 39.2% services: 43.2% (2006 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $11,400 (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 9% (2003 est.) | IMF estimate: 6%
note: official government statistics show 21.4% growth, but these estimates are widely regarded as unreliable (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 56 00 N, 24 00 E | 40 00 N, 60 00 E |
Geography - note | fertile central plains are separated by hilly uplands that are ancient glacial deposits | landlocked; the western and central low-lying desolate portions of the country make up the great Garagum (Kara-Kum) desert, which occupies over 80% of the country; eastern part is plateau |
Heliports | - | 1 (2007) |
Highways | total: 75,243 km
paved: 68,697 km (including 417 km of expressways) unpaved: 6,546 km (2000) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.1%
highest 10%: 25.6% (1996) |
lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 31.7% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for opiates and other illicit drugs from Southwest Asia, Latin America, and Western Europe to Western Europe and Scandinavia; limited production of methamphetamine and ecstasy; susceptible to money laundering despite changes to banking legislation | transit country for Afghan narcotics bound for Russian and Western European markets; transit point for heroin precursor chemicals bound for Afghanistan |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | mineral products 21%, machinery and equipment 17%, transport equipment 11%, chemicals 9%, textiles and clothing 9%, metals 5% (2001) | machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Russia 22%, Germany 16.1%, Poland 5.2%, Italy 4.3%, France 4.2% (2003) | UAE 15.5%, Turkey 11.1%, Ukraine 9.1%, Russia 9%, Germany 7.8%, Iran 7.6%, China 6.4%, US 4.5% (2006) |
Independence | 11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence) | 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union) |
Industrial production growth rate | 16.1% (2003 est.) | 22% (2003 est.) |
Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, electric motors, television sets, refrigerators and freezers, petroleum refining, shipbuilding (small ships), furniture making, textiles, food processing, fertilizers, agricultural machinery, optical equipment, electronic components, computers, amber | natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.61 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 53.49 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 57.84 deaths/1,000 live births female: 48.91 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -1.2% (2003 est.) | 11.5% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NIB, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | AsDB, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO |
Irrigated land | 90 sq km (1998 est.) | 18,000 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Constitutional Court; Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; judges for all courts appointed by the President | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) |
Labor force | 1.642 million (2003 est.) | 2.32 million (2003 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 20%, industry 30%, services 50% (1997 est.) | agriculture: 48.2%
industry: 13.8% services: 37% (2003 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,273 km
border countries: Belarus 502 km, Latvia 453 km, Poland 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad) 227 km |
total: 3,736 km
border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km |
Land use | arable land: 45.22%
permanent crops: 0.91% other: 53.87% (2001) |
arable land: 4.51%
permanent crops: 0.14% other: 95.35% (2005) |
Languages | Lithuanian (official), Polish, Russian | Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7% |
Legal system | based on civil law system; legislative acts can be appealed to the constitutional court | based on civil law system and Islamic law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Seimas (141 seats, 71 members are directly elected by popular vote, 70 are elected by proportional representation; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 10 and 24 October 2004 (next to be held October 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - Labor 28.6%, Working for Lithuania (Social Democrats and Social Liberals) 20.7%, Homeland Union (Conservatives) 14.6%, For Order and Justice (Liberal Democrats and Lithuanian People's Union) 11.4%, Liberal and Center Union 9.1%, Union of Farmers and New Democracy 6.6%; seats by faction - Labor 39, Homeland Union 25, Social Democrats 20, Liberal and Center Union 18, Social Liberals 11, Union of Farmers and New Democracy Parties 10, Liberal Democrats 10, Electoral Action 2, independents 6 |
two parliamentary bodies, a People's Council or Halk Maslahaty (supreme legislative body of up to 2,500 delegates, some elected by popular vote and some appointed; meets at least yearly) and a National Assembly or Mejlis (50 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: People's Council - last held in April 2003 (next to be held in December 2008); Mejlis - last held 19 December 2004 (next to be held in December 2008) election results: Mejlis - DPT 100%; seats by party - DPT 50; note - all 50 elected officials are members of the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan and are preapproved by the president note: in late 2003, a law was adopted reducing the powers of the Mejlis and making the Halk Maslahaty the supreme legislative organ; the Halk Maslahaty can now legally dissolve the Mejlis, and the president is now able to participate in the Mejlis as its supreme leader; the Mejlis can no longer adopt or amend the constitution or announce referendums or its elections; since the president is both the "Chairman for Life" of the Halk Maslahaty and the supreme leader of the Mejlis, the 2003 law has the effect of making him the sole authority of both the executive and legislative branches of government |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.46 years
male: 68.22 years female: 79 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 68.3 years
male: 65.23 years female: 71.54 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.7% female: 99.6% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.8% male: 99.3% female: 98.3% (1999 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia | Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan |
Map references | Europe | Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm | none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 49 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 296,856 GRT/317,731 DWT
by type: cargo 20, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 8, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 12, roll on/roll off 2, short-sea/passenger 4 foreign-owned: Denmark 12, Netherlands 1 registered in other countries: 11 (2004 est.) |
total: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 22,870 GRT/25,801 DWT
by type: cargo 4, combination ore/oil 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 1 (2007) |
Military branches | National Defense Volunteer Forces (SKAT), Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force | Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces (2007) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $230.8 million (FY01) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.9% (FY01) | 3.4% (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 943,063 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 738,602 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 28,300 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 16 February (1918); note - 16 February 1918 is the date Lithuania declared its independence from Soviet Russia and established its statehood; 11 March 1990 is the date it declared its independence from the Soviet Union | Independence Day, 27 October (1991) |
Nationality | noun: Lithuanian(s)
adjective: Lithuanian |
noun: Turkmen(s)
adjective: Turkmenistani |
Natural hazards | NA | NA |
Natural resources | peat, arable land | petroleum, natural gas, sulfur, salt |
Net migration rate | -0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -3.01 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 1,696 km; oil 331 km; refined products 109 km (2004) | gas 6,441 km; oil 1,361 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | Electoral Action of Lithuanian Poles [Valdemar TOMASZEVSKI, chairman]; Homeland Union/Conservative Party or TS [Andrius KUBILIUS, chairman]; Labor Party [Viktor USPASKICH, chairman]; Liberal and Center Union [Arturas ZUOKAS, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party [Valentinas MAZURONIS, chairman]; Lithuanian Christian Democrats or LKD [Valentinas STUNDYS, chairman]; Lithuanian People's Union for a Fair Lithuania; Lithuanian Social Democratic Coalition [Algirdas BRAZAUSKAS, chairman] consists of the Lithuanian Democratic Labor Party or LDDP and the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party or LSDP; New Democracy and Farmer's Union or VNDPS [Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE, chairman]; Social Liberals (New Union) [Arturas PAULAUSKAS, chairman]; Social Union of Christian Conservatives [Gediminas VAGNORIUS, chairman]; Young Lithuania and New Nationalists | Democratic Party of Turkmenistan or DPT
note: formal opposition parties are outlawed; unofficial, small opposition movements exist underground or in foreign countries; the two most prominent opposition groups-in-exile have been National Democratic Movement of Turkmenistan (NDMT) and the United Democratic Party of Turkmenistan (UDPT); NDMT was led by former Foreign Minister Boris SHIKHMURADOV until his arrest and imprisonment in the wake of the 25 November 2002 assassination attempt on President NIYAZOV; UDPT is led by former Foreign Minister Abdy KULIEV and is based in Moscow |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 3,607,899 (July 2004 est.) | 5,097,028 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 27% (2002) |
Population growth rate | -0.33% (2004 est.) | 1.617% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Butinge, Kaunas, Klaipeda | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 29, FM 142, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 16, FM 8, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Railways | total: 1,998 km
broad gauge: 1,807 km 1.524-m gauge (122 km electrified) standard gauge: 22 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 169 km 0.750-m gauge (all service suspended) (2003) |
total: 2,440 km
broad gauge: 2,440 km 1.520-m gauge (2006) |
Religions | Roman Catholic (primarily), Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelical Christian Baptist, Muslim, Jewish | Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.52 male(s)/female total population: 0.89 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.039 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.981 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.766 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: inadequate, but is being modernized to provide an improved international capability and better residential access
domestic: a national, fiber-optic cable, interurban, trunk system is nearing completion; rural exchanges are being improved and expanded; mobile cellular systems are being installed; access to the Internet is available; still many unsatisfied telephone subscriber applications international: country code - 370; landline connections to Latvia and Poland; major international connections to Denmark, Sweden, and Norway by submarine cable for further transmission by satellite |
general assessment: poorly developed
domestic: Turkmenistan's telecommunications network remains woefully underdeveloped; Turkmentelekom, in cooperation with foreign investors, is planning to upgrade the country's telephone exchanges and install a new digital switching system international: country code - 993; linked by cable and microwave radio relay to other CIS republics and to other countries by leased connections to the Moscow international gateway switch; a new telephone link from Ashgabat to Iran has been established; a new exchange in Ashgabat switches international traffic through Turkey via Intelsat; satellite earth stations - 1 Orbita and 1 Intelsat (2006) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 824,200 (2003) | 495,000 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,169,900 (2003) | 105,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 27
note: Lithuania has approximately 27 broadcasting stations, but may have as many as 100 transmitters, including repeater stations (2001) |
4 (government-owned and programmed) (2004) |
Terrain | lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil | flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in west |
Total fertility rate | 1.17 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 3.13 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.3% (2003 est.) | 60% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | 600 km (2004) | 1,300 km (Amu Darya and Kara Kum canal important inland waterways) (2006) |