Turkmenistan (2001) | Equatorial Guinea (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 5 welayatlar (singular - welayat): Ahal Welayaty (Ashgabat), Balkan Welayaty (Nebitdag), Dashhowuz Welayaty (formerly Tashauz), Lebap Welayaty (Charjew), Mary Welayaty
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses) |
7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
37.88% (male 891,758; female 852,104) 15-64 years: 58.09% (male 1,313,303; female 1,360,690) 65 years and over: 4.03% (male 70,800; female 114,589) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 41.7% (male 112,326/female 111,244)
15-64 years: 54.5% (male 140,568/female 151,500) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 8,900/female 11,343) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, grain; livestock | coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber |
Airports | 76 (2000 est.) | 4 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
13 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 less than 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
63 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 41 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
488,100 sq km land: 488,100 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 28,051 sq km
land: 28,051 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than California | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | Annexed by Russia between 1865 and 1885, Turkmenistan became a Soviet republic in 1925. It achieved its independence upon the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. President NIYAZOV retains absolute control over the country and opposition is not tolerated. Extensive hydrocarbon/natural gas reserves could prove a boon to this underdeveloped country if extraction and delivery projects can be worked out. | Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. This tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands, is one of the smallest on the African continent. President OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO has ruled the country for over two decades since seizing power from his uncle, then President MACIAS, in a 1979 coup. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 and 2002 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 legislative elections - were widely seen as being flawed. The president controls most opposition parties through the judicious use of patronage. Despite the country's economic windfall from oil production resulting in a massive increase in government revenue in recent years, there have been few improvements in the country's living standards. |
Birth rate | 28.55 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 36.18 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$588.6 million expenditures: $658.2 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues: $813.2 million
expenditures: $375.3 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
Capital | Ashgabat | Malabo |
Climate | subtropical desert | tropical; always hot, humid |
Coastline | 0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km) | 296 km |
Constitution | adopted 18 May 1992 | approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Turkmenistan local long form: none local short form: Turkmenistan former: Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form: Republic of Equatorial Guinea
conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea local long form: Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial local short form: Guinea Ecuatorial former: Spanish Guinea |
Currency | Turkmen manat (TMM) | - |
Death rate | 8.98 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.5 billion (2000 est.) | $248 million (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Steven R. MANN embassy: 9 Pushkin Street, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan 774000 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [9] (9312) 35-00-45 FAX: [9] (9312) 51-13-05 |
the US does not have an embassy in Equatorial Guinea (embassy closed September 1995); the US ambassador to Cameroon is accredited to Equatorial Guinea; the US State Department is considering opening a Consulate Agency in Malabo |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Mered ORAZOV chancery: 2207 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-1500 FAX: [1] (202) 588-0697 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Teodoro Biyogo NSUE
chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 518-5252 |
Disputes - international | Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan | in 2002, ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but a dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River, imprecisely defined maritime coordinates in the ICJ decision, and the unresolved Bakasi allocation contribute to the delay in implementation; UN has been pressing Equatorial Guinea and Gabon to pledge to resolve the sovereignty dispute over Gabon-occupied Mbane Island and create a maritime boundary in the hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay |
Economic aid - recipient | $27.2 million (1995) | $33.8 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Turkmenistan is largely desert country with intensive agriculture in irrigated oases and huge gas (fifth largest reserves in the world) and oil resources. One-half of its irrigated land is planted in cotton, making it the world's tenth largest producer. Until the end of 1993, Turkmenistan had experienced less economic disruption than other former Soviet states because its economy received a boost from higher prices for oil and gas and a sharp increase in hard currency earnings. In 1994, Russia's refusal to export Turkmen gas to hard currency markets and mounting debts of its major customers in the former USSR for gas deliveries contributed to a sharp fall in industrial production and caused the budget to shift from a surplus to a slight deficit. 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. In 1998-2000, 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 sharply because of higher international oil and gas prices. Prospects in the near future are discouraging because of widespread internal poverty and the burden of foreign debt. IMF assistance would seem to be necessary, yet the government is not as yet ready to accept IMF requirements. Turkmenistan's 1999 deal to ship 20 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas through Russia's Gazprom pipeline helped alleviate the 2000 fiscal shortfall. Inadequate fiscal restraint and the tenuous nature of Turkmenistan's 2001 gas deals, combined with a lack of economic reform, will limit progress in the near term. | The discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth (the government has stated its intention to reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture). A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993 because of corruption and mismanagement. No longer eligible for concessional financing because of large oil revenues, the government has been unsuccessfully trying to agree on a "shadow" fiscal management program with the World Bank and IMF. Businesses, for the most part, are owned by government officials and their family members. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Growth presumably remained strong in 2004, led by oil. |
Electricity - consumption | 4.785 billion kWh (1999) | 24.82 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 4.1 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 1.1 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 8.371 billion kWh (1999) | 26.69 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
99.94% hydro: 0.06% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Vpadina Akchanaya -81.00 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 |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico Basile 3,008 m |
Environment - current issues | 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 | tap water is not potable; deforestation |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Turkmen 77%, Uzbek 9.2%, Russian 6.7%, Kazakh 2%, other 5.1% (1995) | Bioko (primarily Bubi, some Fernandinos), Rio Muni (primarily Fang), Europeans less than 1,000, mostly Spanish |
Exchange rates | Turkmen manats per US dollar - 5,200 (January 2001), 5,200 (January 2000), 5,350 (January 1999), 4,070 (January 1997), 2,400 (January 1996) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President and Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Saparmurat NIYAZOV (since 27 October 1990, when the first direct presidential election occurred); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President and Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Saparmurat NIYAZOV (since 27 October 1990, when the first direct presidential election occurred); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president note: NIYAZOV's term in office was extended indefinitely on 28 December 1999 by the Assembly (Majlis) during a session of the People's Council (Halk Maslahaty) elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 21 June 1992 (next scheduled to be held NA); note - President NIYAZOV was unanimously approved as president for life by the Assembly on 28 December 1999); deputy chairmen of the cabinet of ministers are appointed by the president election results: Saparmurat NIYAZOV elected president without opposition; percent of vote - Saparmurat NIYAZOV 99.5% |
chief of state: President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979 when he seized power in a military coup)
head of government: Prime Minister Miguel Abia BITEO BORICO (since 14 June 2004); First Deputy Prime Minister Mercelino Oyono NTUTUMU (since 15 June 2004); Deputy Prime Minister Ricardo Mangue Obama NFUBEA (since 15 June 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held December 2009); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO reelected president; percent of vote - Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO 97.1%, Celestino Bonifacio BACALE 2.2%; elections marred by widespread fraud |
Exports | $2.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA |
Exports - commodities | gas 33%, oil 30%, cotton fiber 18%, textiles 8% (1999) | petroleum, methanol, timber, cocoa |
Exports - partners | Ukraine, Iran, Turkey, Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan | US 29.3%, China 22.8%, Spain 16%, Taiwan 14.9%, Canada 6.8% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 January - 31 December |
Flag description | green field with a vertical red stripe near the hoist side, containing five carpet guls (designs used in producing rugs) stacked above two crossed olive branches similar to the olive branches on the UN flag; a white crescent moon and five white stars appear in the upper corner of the field just to the fly side of the red stripe | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $19.6 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
25% industry: 43% services: 32% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 3%
industry: 95.7% services: 1.3% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,300 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 16% (2000 est.) | 20% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 40 00 N, 60 00 E | 2 00 N, 10 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked | insular and continental regions rather widely separated |
Highways | total:
22,000 km paved: 18,000 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) unpaved: 4,000 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1996) |
total: 2,880 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.6% highest 10%: 31.7% (1998) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | limited illicit cultivator of opium poppy, mostly for domestic consumption; limited government eradication program; increasingly used as transshipment point for illicit drugs from Southwest Asia to Russia and Western Europe; also a transshipment point for acetic anhydride destined for Afghanistan | - |
Imports | $1.65 billion (c.i.f., 2000 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 60%, foodstuffs 15% (1999) | petroleum sector equipment, other equipment |
Imports - partners | Ukraine, Turkey, Russia, Germany, US, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan | US 26.8%, Cote d'Ivoire 21.4%, Spain 13.6%, France 8.8%, UK 7.8%, Italy 4.4% (2004) |
Independence | 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union) | 12 October 1968 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 18% (2000 est.) | 30% (2002 est.) |
Industries | natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing | petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas |
Infant mortality rate | 73.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 85.13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 91.28 deaths/1,000 live births female: 78.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 14% (2000 est.) | 8.5% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | AsDB, CCC, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WToO, WTO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | NA | - |
Irrigated land | 13,000 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) | Supreme Tribunal |
Labor force | 2.34 million (1996) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 44%, industry 19%, services 37% (1996) | - |
Land boundaries | total:
3,736 km border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km |
total: 539 km
border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km |
Land use | arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 63% forests and woodland: 8% other: 26% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 4.63%
permanent crops: 3.57% other: 91.8% (2001) |
Languages | Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7% | Spanish (official), French (official), pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo |
Legal system | based on civil law system | partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom |
Legislative branch | under the 1992 constitution, there are two parliamentary bodies, a unicameral People's Council or Halk Maslahaty (more than 100 seats, some of which are elected by popular vote and some of which are appointed; meets infrequently) and a unicameral Assembly or Majlis (50 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: People's Council - NA; Assembly - last held 12 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; note - all 50 elected officials preapproved by President NIYAZOV; most are from the DPT |
unicameral House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (80 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 25 April 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PDGE 98, NA 2 note: Parliament has little power since the constitution vests all executive authority in the president |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
61 years male: 57.43 years female: 64.76 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 49.7 years
male: 48.01 years female: 51.44 years (2005 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 can read and write
total population: 85.7% male: 93.3% female: 78.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon |
Map references | Commonwealth of Independent States | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,459 GRT/8,865 DWT ships by type: container 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,556 GRT/9,704 DWT
by type: cargo 1 (2005) |
Military branches | Ministry of Defense (Army, Air and Air Defense, Navy, Border Troops, and Internal Troops), National Guard | Army, Navy, Air Force (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $90 million (FY99) | $126.2 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.4% (FY99) | 2.5% (2004) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,173,500 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
952,218 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
48,292 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 October (1991) | Independence Day, 12 October (1968) |
Nationality | noun:
Turkmen(s) adjective: Turkmen |
noun: Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s)
adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean |
Natural hazards | NA | violent windstorms, flash floods |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, sulfur, salt | petroleum, natural gas, timber, gold, bauxite, diamonds, tantalum, sand and gravel, clay |
Net migration rate | -1.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 250 km; natural gas 4,400 km | condensate 37 km; gas 39 km; liquid natural gas 4 km; oil 24 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party of Turkmenistan or DPT [Saparmurat NIYAZOV]
note: formal opposition parties are outlawed; unofficial, small opposition movements exist underground or in foreign countries |
Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido MIKO Abogo]; Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea or PDGE (ruling party) [Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO]; Party for Progress of Equatorial Guinea or PPGE [Severo MOTO]; Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea or APGE [Miguel Esono EMAN]; Popular Union or UP [Andres Moises Bda ADA]; Progressive Democratic Alliance or ADP [Victorino Bolekia BONAY]; Union of Independent Democrats of UDI [Daniel OYONO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 4,603,244 (July 2001 est.) | 535,881 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 58% (1999 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.85% (2001 est.) | 2.42% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Turkmenbashi | Malabo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 16, FM 8, shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2002) |
Radios | 1.225 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
2,187 km broad gauge: 2,187 km 1.520-m gauge (1996 est.) |
- |
Religions | Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2% | nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal adult |
Telephone system | general assessment:
poorly developed domestic: NA international: 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 |
general assessment: poor system with adequate government services
domestic: NA international: country code - 240; international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 363,000 (1997) | 9,600 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,300 (1998) | 41,500 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (much programming relayed from Russia and Turkey) (1997) | 1 (2002) |
Terrain | flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in west | coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic |
Total fertility rate | 3.58 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.62 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 30% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | the Amu Darya is an important inland waterway for Turkmenistan | - |