Tajikistan (2002) | Barbados (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 2 provinces (viloyatho, singular - viloyat) and 1 autonomous province* (viloyati mukhtor); Viloyati Mukhtori Kuhistoni Badakhshon* (Khorugh), Viloyati Khatlon (Qurghonteppa), Viloyati Sughd (Khujand)
note: the administrative center name follows in parentheses |
11 parishes; Christ Church, Saint Andrew, Saint George, Saint James, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Lucy, Saint Michael, Saint Peter, Saint Philip, Saint Thomas; note - the city of Bridgetown may be given parish status |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 40.4% (male 1,370,314; female 1,346,465)
15-64 years: 54.9% (male 1,835,573; female 1,854,677) 65 years and over: 4.7% (male 136,033; female 176,505) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 21.2% (male 29,621; female 29,207)
15-64 years: 70% (male 94,840; female 99,230) 65 years and over: 8.8% (male 9,355; female 15,011) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, grain, fruits, grapes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, goats | sugarcane, vegetables, cotton |
Airports | 53 (2001) | 1 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 51
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 36 (2002) |
- |
Area | total: 143,100 sq km
land: 142,700 sq km water: 400 sq km |
total: 431 sq km
land: 431 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Wisconsin | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Tajikistan has experienced three changes in government and a five-year civil war since it gained independence in 1991 from the USSR. A peace agreement among rival factions was signed in 1997, and implemented in 2000. The central government's less than total control over some areas of the country has forced it to compromise and forge alliances among factions. Attention by the international community in the wake of the war in Afghanistan has brought increased economic development assistance, which could create jobs and increase stability in the long term. Tajikistan is in the early stages of seeking World Trade Organization membership and has joined NATO's Partnership for Peace. | The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Slaves worked the sugar plantations established on the island until 1834 when slavery was abolished. The economy remained heavily dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the 20th century. The gradual introduction of social and political reforms in the 1940s and 1950s led to complete independence from the UK in 1966. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance. |
Birth rate | 32.99 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 13.15 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $146 million
expenditures: $196 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) (2000 est.) |
revenues: $847 million (including grants)
expenditures: $886 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Dushanbe | Bridgetown |
Climate | midlatitude continental, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid to polar in Pamir Mountains | tropical; rainy season (June to October) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 97 km |
Constitution | 6 November 1994 | 30 November 1966 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Tajikistan
conventional short form: Tajikistan local long form: Jumhurii Tojikiston local short form: Tojikiston former: Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Barbados |
Currency | somoni | Barbadian dollar (BBD) |
Death rate | 8.51 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 9.02 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.23 billion (2000 est.) | $692 million (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Franklin P. HUDDLE, Jr.
embassy: 10 Pavlova Street, Dushanbe, Tajikistan 734003; note - the embassy in Dushanbe is not yet fully operational; most business is still handled in Almaty at 531 Sayfullin Street, Almaty, Kazakhstan, telephone 7-3272-58-79-61, FAX 7-3272-58079-68 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [992] (372) 21-03-48, 21-03-50, 21-03-52, 24-15-60 FAX: [992] (372) 51-00-28, 21-03-62 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Earl N. PHILLIPS, Jr.
embassy: Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Building, Broad Street, Bridgetown; (courier) ALICO Building-Cheapside, Bridgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 302, Bridgetown; FPO AA 34055 telephone: [1] (246) 436-4950 FAX: [1] (246) 429-5246, 429-3379 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Tajikistan does not have an embassy in the US, but does have a permanent mission to the UN: address - 136 East 67th Street, New York, NY 10021, telephone - [1] (212) 472-7645, FAX - [1] (212) 628-0252; permanent representative to the UN is Khamrokhon ZARIPOV | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael Ian KING
chancery: 2144 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 339-9201 FAX: [1] (202) 332-7467 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York consulate(s): Los Angeles |
Disputes - international | Uzbekistan has mined much of its undemarcated southern and eastern border with Tajikistan; border demarcation negotiations continuing with Kyrgyzstan in Isfara Valley area; Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan wrestle with sharing water resources and the resulting regional environmental degradation caused by the shrinking of the Aral Sea | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $60.7 million from US (2001) | $9.1 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Tajikistan has the lowest per capita GDP among the 15 former Soviet republics. Cotton is the most important crop. Mineral resources, varied but limited in amount, include silver, gold, uranium, and tungsten. Industry consists only of a large aluminum plant, hydropower facilities, and small obsolete factories mostly in light industry and food processing. The civil war (1992-97) severely damaged the already weak economic infrastructure and caused a sharp decline in industrial and agricultural production. Even though 80% of its people continue to live in abject poverty, Tajikistan has experienced strong economic growth since 1997. Continued privatization of medium and large state-owned enterprises will further increase productivity. Tajikistan's economic situation, however, remains fragile due to uneven implementation of structural reforms, weak governance, and the external debt burden. Servicing of the debt, owed principally to Russia and Uzbekistan, could require as much as 50% of government revenues in 2002, thus limiting the nation's ability to meet pressing development needs. | Historically, the Barbadian economy had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities, but production in recent years has diversified into manufacturing and tourism. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners, and there is also a light-manufacturing sector. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, to encourage direct foreign investment, and to privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. The economy contracted in 2002 mainly due to a 3% decline in tourism. Growth should be positive in 2003, the precise level largely dependent on economic conditions in the US and Europe. |
Electricity - consumption | 12.539 billion kWh (2000) | 725.4 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 3.909 billion kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 3.2 billion kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 14.245 billion kWh (2000) | 780 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 2%
hydro: 98% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Syr Darya (Sirdaryo) 300 m
highest point: Qullai Ismoili Somoni 7,495 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate sanitation facilities; increasing levels of soil salinity; industrial pollution; excessive pesticides | pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity |
Ethnic groups | Tajik 64.9%, Uzbek 25%, Russian 3.5% (declining because of emigration), other 6.6% | black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6% |
Exchange rates | Tajikistani somoni per US dollar - 2.55 (January 2002), 2.2 (January 2001), 1550 (January 2000), 998 (January 1999), 350 (January 1997), 284 (January 1996)
note: the new unit of exchange was introduced on 30 October 2000, with one somoni equal to 1,000 of the old Tajikistani rubles |
Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2 (2002), 2 (2001), 2 (2000), 2 (1999), 2 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Emomali RAHMONOV (since 6 November 1994; head of state and Supreme Assembly chairman since 19 November 1992)
head of government: Prime Minister Oqil OQILOV (since 20 January 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president, approved by the Supreme Assembly elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 6 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2006); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Emomali RAHMONOV elected president; percent of vote - Emomali RAHMONOV 97%, Davlat USMON 2% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Clifford Straughn HUSBANDS (since 1 June 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Owen Seymour ARTHUR (since 6 September 1994); Deputy Prime Minister Mia MOTTLEY (since 26 May 2003) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister |
Exports | $640 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | aluminum, electricity, cotton, fruits, vegetable oil, textiles | sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components |
Exports - partners | Europe 43%, Russia 30%, Uzbekistan 13% (2000) | US 14.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 12%, UK 10.6%, Jamaica 6.2%, Saint Lucia 4.7% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three horizontal stripes of red (top), a wider stripe of white, and green; a gold crown surmounted by seven gold, five-pointed stars is located in the center of the white stripe | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold, and blue with the head of a black trident centered on the gold band; the trident head represents independence and a break with the past (the colonial coat of arms contained a complete trident) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $7.5 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4.153 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 19%
industry: 25% services: 56% (2000) |
agriculture: 6%
industry: 16% services: 78% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,140 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15,000 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 8.3% (2001 est.) | -2.8% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 39 00 N, 71 00 E | 13 10 N, 59 32 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; mountainous region dominated by the Trans-Alay Range in the north and the Pamirs in the southeast; highest point, Qullai Ismoili Somoni (formerly Communism Peak), was the tallest mountain in the former USSR | easternmost Caribbean island |
Highways | total: 29,900 km
paved: 21,400 km (includes some all-weather gravel-surfaced roads) unpaved: 8,500 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1990) |
total: 1,793 km
paved: 1,719 km unpaved: 74 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | major transit country for Afghan narcotics bound for Russian and, to a lesser extent, Western European markets; limited illicit cultivation of opium poppy for domestic consumption; Tajikistan seizes roughly 80 percent of all drugs captured in Central Asia and stands third world-wide in seizures of opiates (heroin and raw opium) | one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US; offshore financial center |
Imports | $700 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | electricity, petroleum products, aluminum oxide, machinery and equipment, foodstuffs | consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components |
Imports - partners | Uzbekistan 27%, Russia 16%, Europe 12% (2000) | US 41.1%, Trinidad and Tobago 17%, UK 7.3%, Japan 4.2% (2002) |
Independence | 9 September 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 30 November 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 10.3% (2000 est.) | -3.2% (2000 est.) |
Industries | aluminum, zinc, lead, chemicals and fertilizers, cement, vegetable oil, metal-cutting machine tools, refrigerators and freezers | tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export |
Infant mortality rate | 114.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 12.72 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.39 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 33% (2001 est.) | -0.6% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | AsDB, CCC, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IOC, IOM, ITU, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 4 (2002) | 19 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 7,200 sq km (1998 est.) | 10 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) | Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services) |
Labor force | 3.187 million (2000) | 128,500 (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 67%, industry 8%, services 25% (2000 est.) | services 75%, industry 15%, agriculture 10% (1996 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 3,651 km
border countries: Afghanistan 1,206 km, China 414 km, Kyrgyzstan 870 km, Uzbekistan 1,161 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 5.41%
permanent crops: 0.92% other: 93.67% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 37.21%
permanent crops: 2.33% other: 60.46% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Tajik (official), Russian widely used in government and business | English |
Legal system | based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts | English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts |
Legislative branch | bicameral Supreme Assembly or Majlisi Oli consists of the Assembly of Representatives (lower chamber) or Majlisi Namoyandagon (63 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the National Assembly (upper chamber) or Majlisi Milliy (33 seats; members are indirectly elected, 25 selected by local deputies, 8 appointed by the president; all serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 27 February and 12 March 2000 for the Assembly of Representatives (next to be held NA 2005) and 23 March 2000 for the National Assembly (next to be held NA 2005) election results: Assembly of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDPT 65%, Communist Party 20%, Islamic Rebirth Party 7.5%, other 7.5%; seats by party - NA; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (21-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Assembly (30 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 21 May 2003 (next to be held by May 2008) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - BLP 23, DLP 7 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 64.28 years
male: 61.24 years female: 67.46 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 71.84 years
male: 69.56 years female: 74.14 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 97.4% male: 98% female: 96.8% (1995 est.) |
Location | Central Asia, west of China | Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela |
Map references | Asia | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 34 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 284,222 GRT/439,810 DWT
ships by type: bulk 8, cargo 22, combination bulk 1, container 1, petroleum tanker 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1, The Bahamas 1, Canada 4, Germany 1, Greece 2, Hong Kong 7, Norway 7, UK 18 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Air Force and Air Defense Force, Presidential National Guard, Security Forces (internal and border troops) | Royal Barbados Defense Force (including Ground Forces and Coast Guard), Royal Barbados Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $35.4 million (FY01) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.9% (FY01) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,646,278 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 77,862 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,349,505 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 53,282 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 72,056 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day (or National Day), 9 September (1991) | Independence Day, 30 November (1966) |
Nationality | noun: Tajikistani(s)
adjective: Tajikistani |
noun: Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial)
adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial) |
Natural hazards | earthquakes and floods | infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides |
Natural resources | hydropower, some petroleum, uranium, mercury, brown coal, lead, zinc, antimony, tungsten, silver, gold | petroleum, fish, natural gas |
Net migration rate | -3.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | natural gas 400 km (1992) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party or DPT [Mahmadruzi ISKANDAROV, chairman]; Islamic Revival Party [Said Abdullo NURI, chairman]; People's Democratic Party of Tajikistan or PDPT [Emomali RAHMONOV]; Social Democratic Party or SDPT [Rahmatullo ZOIROV]; Socialist Party or SPT [Sherali KENJAYEV]; Tajik Communist Party or CPT [Shodi SHABDOLOV] | Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [Clyde Mascoll] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | there are two unregistered political parties with 1,000 or more members: Progressive Party [Suton QUVVATOV]; Unity Party [Hikmatuko SAIDOV] | Barbados Workers Union [Leroy TROTMAN]; Clement Payne Labor Union [David COMMISSIONG]; People's Progressive Movement [Eric SEALY]; Worker's Party of Barbados [Dr. George BELLE] |
Population | 6,719,567 (July 2002 est.) | 277,264 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 80% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.12% (2002 est.) | 0.38% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Bridgetown, Speightstown (Port Charles Marina) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 8, FM 10, shortwave 2 (2002) | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 1.291 million (1991) | - |
Railways | total: 482 km
broad gauge: 482 km 1.520-m gauge note: includes only lines in common carrier service; lines dedicated to particular industries are excluded (2001) |
0 km |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 85%, Shi'a Muslim 5% | Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.01 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: poorly developed and not well maintained; many towns are not reached by the national network
domestic: cable and microwave radio relay international: linked by cable and microwave radio relay to other CIS republics and by leased connections to the Moscow international gateway switch; Dushanbe linked by Intelsat to international gateway switch in Ankara (Turkey); satellite earth stations - 1 Orbita and 2 Intelsat |
general assessment: NA
domestic: island-wide automatic telephone system international: satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Trinidad and Saint Lucia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 363,000 (1997) | 108,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,500 (1997) | 8,013 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 13 (2001) | 1 (plus two cable channels) (1997) |
Terrain | Pamir and Alay Mountains dominate landscape; western Fergana Valley in north, Kofarnihon and Vakhsh Valleys in southwest | relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region |
Total fertility rate | 4.23 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.65 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 20% (2001 est.) | 10% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |