Netherlands (2001) | Kazakhstan (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 12 provinces (provincien, singular - provincie); Drenthe, Flevoland, Friesland, Gelderland, Groningen, Limburg, Noord-Brabant, Noord-Holland, Overijssel, Utrecht, Zeeland, Zuid-Holland | 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) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
18.38% (male 1,501,925; female 1,436,017) 15-64 years: 67.9% (male 5,518,575; female 5,333,442) 65 years and over: 13.72% (male 899,052; female 1,292,461) (2001 est.) |
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.) |
Agriculture - products | grains, potatoes, sugar beets, fruits, vegetables; livestock | grain (mostly spring wheat), cotton; wool, livestock |
Airports | 28 (2000 est.) | 449 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
19 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
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.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
9 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 6 (2000 est.) |
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.) |
Area | total:
41,526 sq km land: 33,883 sq km water: 7,643 sq km |
total:
2,717,300 sq km land: 2,669,800 sq km water: 47,500 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey | slightly less than four times the size of Texas |
Background | The Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815. In 1830 Belgium seceded and formed a separate kingdom. The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I but suffered a brutal invasion and occupation by Germany in World War II. A modern, industrialized nation, the Netherlands is also a large exporter of agricultural products. The country was a founding member of NATO and the EC, and participated in the introduction of the euro in 1999. | 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. |
Birth rate | 11.85 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 17.3 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$134 billion expenditures: $134 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues:
$3.1 billion expenditures: $3.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
Capital | Amsterdam; The Hague is the seat of government | Astana; note - the government moved from Almaty to Astana in December 1998 |
Climate | temperate; marine; cool summers and mild winters | continental, cold winters and hot summers, arid and semiarid |
Coastline | 451 km | 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) |
Constitution | adopted 1814; amended many times, last time 17 February 1983 | adopted by national referendum 30 August 1995; first post-independence constitution was adopted 28 January 1993 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Kingdom of the Netherlands conventional short form: Netherlands local long form: Koninkrijk der Nederlanden local short form: Nederland |
conventional long form:
Republic of Kazakhstan conventional short form: Kazakhstan local long form: Qazaqstan Respublikasy local short form: none former: Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic |
Currency | Netherlands guilder (NLG); euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced the euro as a common currency that is now being used by financial institutions in the Netherlands at a fixed rate of 2.20371 Netherlands guilders per euro and will replace the local currency for all transactions in 2002 |
tenge (KZT) |
Death rate | 8.69 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 10.61 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $0 | $12.5 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Cynthia P. SCHNEIDER embassy: Lange Voorhout 102, 2514 EJ, The Hague mailing address: PSC 71, Box 1000, APO AE 09715 telephone: [31] (70) 310-9209 FAX: [31] (70) 361-4688 consulate(s) general: Amsterdam |
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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Joris M. VOS chancery: 4200 Linnean Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-5300 FAX: [1] (202) 362-3430 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York consulate(s): Boston |
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 |
Disputes - international | none | Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $3.5 billion (2000 est.) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $409.6 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | The Netherlands is a prosperous and open economy depending heavily on foreign trade. The economy is noted for stable industrial relations, moderate inflation, a sizable current account surplus, and an important role as a European transportation hub. Industrial activity is predominantly in food processing, chemicals, petroleum refining, and electrical machinery. A highly mechanized agricultural sector employs no more than 4% of the labor force but provides large surpluses for the food-processing industry and for exports. The Dutch rank third worldwide in value of agricultural exports, behind the US and France. The Dutch economy has expanded by 3% or more in each of the last four years and real GDP growth is likely to be about 3.6% in 2001. The government in 2001 will implement its most comprehensive tax reform since World War II, designed to reduce high income tax levels and redirect the fiscal burden onto consumption. The Dutch were among the first 11 EU countries establishing the euro currency zone on 1 January 1999. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 97.76 billion kWh (1999) | 44.132 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 3.97 billion kWh (1999) | 200 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 22.407 billion kWh (1999) | 3.077 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 85.294 billion kWh (1999) | 44.36 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
90.25% hydro: 0.11% nuclear: 4.27% other: 5.37% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
87.12% hydro: 12.65% nuclear: 0.23% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Prins Alexanderpolder -7 m highest point: Vaalserberg 321 m |
lowest point:
Vpadina Kaundy -132 m highest point: Khan Tangiri Shyngy (Pik Khan-Tengri) 6,995 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution in the form of heavy metals, organic compounds, and nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates; air pollution from vehicles and refining activities; acid rain | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to:
Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Dutch 91%, Moroccans, Turks, and other 9% (1999 est.) | Kazakh (Qazaq) 53.4%, Russian 30%, Ukrainian 3.7%, Uzbek 2.5%, German 2.4%, Uighur 1.4%, other 6.6% (1999 census) |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); Netherlands guilders per US dollar - 1.9837 (1998), 1.9513 (1997), 1.6859 (1996) | tenge per US dollar - 145.09 (January 2001), 142.13 (2000), 119.52 (1999), 78.30 (1998), 75.44 (1997), 67.30 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen BEATRIX (since 30 April 1980); Heir Apparent WILLEM-ALEXANDER (born 27 April 1967), son of the monarch head of government: Prime Minister Wim KOK (since 22 August 1994) and Vice Prime Ministers Annemarie JORRITSMA (since 3 August 1998) and Els BORST-EILERS (since 3 August 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following Second Chamber elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch; vice prime ministers appointed by the monarch note: government coalition - PvdA, VVD, and D'66; there is also a Council of State composed of the monarch, heir apparent, and councilors consulted by the executive on legislative and administrative policy |
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 |
Exports | $210.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $8.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels; foodstuffs | oil 40%, ferrous and nonferrous metals, machinery, chemicals, grain, wool, meat, coal |
Exports - partners | EU 78% (Germany 26%, Belgium-Luxembourg 12%, France 12%, UK 11%, Italy 6%), Central and Eastern Europe, US (2000) | EU 23%, Russia 20%, China 8% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blue; similar to the flag of Luxembourg, which uses a lighter blue and is longer | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $388.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $85.6 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
3.3% industry: 26.3% services: 70.4% (2000 est.) |
agriculture:
10% industry: 30% services: 60% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $24,400 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2000 est.) | 10.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 52 30 N, 5 45 E | 48 00 N, 68 00 E |
Geography - note | located at mouths of three major European rivers (Rhine, Maas or Meuse, and Schelde) | landlocked; Russia leases approximately 6,000 sq km of territory enclosing the Baykonur Cosmodrome |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
125,575 km paved: 113,018 km (including 2,235 km of expressways) unpaved: 12,557 km (1998) |
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) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.8% highest 10%: 25.1% (1994) |
lowest 10%:
2.7% highest 10%: 26.3% (1996) |
Illicit drugs | major European producer of illicit amphetamine and other synthetic drugs; important gateway for cocaine, heroin, and hashish entering Europe; major source of US-bound ecstasy | 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 | $201.2 billion (c.i.f., 2000 est.) | $6.9 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, fuels; foodstuffs, clothing | machinery and parts, industrial materials, oil and gas, vehicles |
Imports - partners | EU 56% (Germany 18%, Belgium-Luxembourg 10%, UK 5%, France 6%), US 9%, Central and Eastern Europe (2000) | Russia 37%, US, Uzbekistan, Turkey, UK, Germany, Ukraine, South Korea (1999) |
Independence | 1579 (from Spain) | 16 December 1991 (from the Soviet Union) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.2% (2000) | 14.9% (2000 est.) |
Industries | agroindustries, metal and engineering products, electrical machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum, construction, microelectronics, fishing | 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 |
Infant mortality rate | 4.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 59.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.6% (2000 est.) | 13.4% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, EMU, ESA, ESCAP, EU, FAO, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | 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) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 52 (2000) | NA |
Irrigated land | 6,000 sq km (1996 est.) | 22,000 sq km (1996 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Hoge Raad (justices are nominated for life by the monarch) | Supreme Court (44 members); Constitutional Council (7 members) |
Labor force | 7.2 million (2000) | 8.8 million (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 73%, industry 23%, agriculture 4% (1998 est.) | industry 27%, agriculture 23%, services 50% (1996) |
Land boundaries | total:
1,027 km border countries: Belgium 450 km, Germany 577 km |
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 |
Land use | arable land:
25% permanent crops: 3% permanent pastures: 25% forests and woodland: 8% other: 39% (1996 est.) |
arable land:
12% permanent crops: 11% permanent pastures: 57% forests and woodland: 4% other: 16% (1996 est.) |
Languages | Dutch | Kazakh (Qazaq, state language) 40%, Russian (official, used in everyday business) 66% |
Legal system | civil law system incorporating French penal theory; constitution does not permit judicial review of acts of the States General; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on civil law system |
Legislative branch | bicameral States General or Staten Generaal consists of the First Chamber or Eerste Kamer (75 seats; members indirectly elected by the country's 12 provincial councils for four-year terms) and the Second Chamber or Tweede Kamer (150 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: First Chamber - last held 25 May 1999 (next to be held NA May 2003); Second Chamber - last held 6 May 1998 (next to be held May 2002) election results: First Chamber - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CDA 20, VVD 19, PvdA 15, D'66 4, other 17; Second Chamber - percent of vote by party - PvdA 30.0%, VVD 25.3%, CDA 19.3%, D'66 9.3%, other 16.1%; seats by party - PvdA 45, VVD 38, CDA 29, D'66 14, other 24 |
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
78.43 years male: 75.55 years female: 81.44 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
63.29 years male: 57.87 years female: 68.97 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% (2000 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 99% female: 96% (1989 est.) |
Location | Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between Belgium and Germany | Central Asia, northwest of China |
Map references | Europe | Commonwealth of Independent States |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
596 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,321,500 GRT/4,877,632 DWT ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 371, chemical tanker 43, container 59, liquefied gas 21, livestock carrier 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 9, passenger 8, petroleum tanker 26, refrigerated cargo 29, roll on/roll off 18, short-sea passenger 3, specialized tanker 5 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Royal Netherlands Army, Royal Netherlands Navy (includes Naval Air Service and Marine Corps), Royal Netherlands Air Force, Royal Constabulary | General Purpose Forces (Army), Air Force, Border Guards, Navy, Republican Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $6.5 billion (FY00/01 est.) | $322 million (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.5% (FY00/01 est.) | 1.5% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
4,083,349 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
4,509,179 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
3,555,501 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
3,598,859 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 20 years of age | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
96,082 (2001 est.) |
males:
163,628 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA in 1909 and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX in 1980), 30 April | Republic Day, 25 October (1990) |
Nationality | noun:
Dutchman(men), Dutchwoman(women) adjective: Dutch |
noun:
Kazakhstani(s) adjective: Kazakhstani |
Natural hazards | flooding | earthquakes in the south, mudslides around Almaty |
Natural resources | natural gas, petroleum, arable land | major deposits of petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, manganese, chrome ore, nickel, cobalt, copper, molybdenum, lead, zinc, bauxite, gold, uranium |
Net migration rate | 2.34 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -6.43 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 418 km; petroleum products 965 km; natural gas 10,230 km | crude oil 2,850 km; refined products 1,500 km; natural gas 3,480 km (1992) |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Appeal or CDA [Jaap de Hoop SCHEFFER]; Democrats '66 or D'66 [Tom DE GRAAF]; Labor Party or PvdA [Wim KOK]; People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (Liberal) or VVD [Hans F. DIJKSTAL]; a host of minor parties | 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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Federation of Netherlands Trade Union Movement (comprising Socialist and Catholic trade unions) and a Protestant trade union; Federation of Catholic and Protestant Employers Associations; Interchurch Peace Council or IKV; large multinational firms; the nondenominational Federation of Netherlands Enterprises | Kazakhstan International Bureau on Human Rights [Yevgeniy ZHOVTIS, executive director] |
Population | 15,981,472 (July 2001 est.) | 16,731,303 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 35% (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.55% (2001 est.) | 0.03% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Amsterdam, Delfzijl, Dordrecht, Eemshaven, Groningen, Haarlem, Ijmuiden, Maastricht, Rotterdam, Terneuzen, Utrecht, Vlissingen | Aqtau (Shevchenko), Atyrau (Gur'yev), Oskemen (Ust-Kamenogorsk), Pavlodar, Semey (Semipalatinsk) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 58, shortwave 3 (1998) | AM 60, FM 17, shortwave 9 (1998) |
Radios | 15.3 million (1996) | 6.47 million (1997) |
Railways | total:
2,739 km standard gauge: 2,739 km 1.435-m gauge; (1,991 km electrified) (1998) |
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) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 31%, Protestant 21%, Muslim 4.4%, other 3.6%, unaffiliated 40% (1998) | Muslim 47%, Russian Orthodox 44%, Protestant 2%, other 7% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
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.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
highly developed and well maintained domestic: the existing system of multi-conductor cables is gradually being replaced by fiber-optic cables; the density of cellular telephone traffic is rapidly increasing and further modernization of the system is expected in the year 2001, with the introduction of the third generation of the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) international: 5 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions) (1996) |
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 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 9,132,400 (1999) | 1.818 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,081,891 (April 1999) | 11,202 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 21 (plus 26 repeaters) (1995) | 12 (plus nine repeaters) (1998) |
Terrain | mostly coastal lowland and reclaimed land (polders); some hills in southeast | extends from the Volga to the Altai Mountains and from the plains in western Siberia to oases and desert in Central Asia |
Total fertility rate | 1.65 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.07 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2.6% (2000 est.) | 13.7% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | 5,046 km
note: 47% of total route length is usable by craft of 1,000 metric ton capacity or larger |
3,900 km
note: on the Syrdariya (Syr Darya) and Ertis (Irtysh) rivers |