Turkmenistan (2001) | Greenland (2003) | |
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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) |
3 districts (landsdele); Avannaa (Nordgronland), Tunu (Ostgronland), Kitaa (Vestgronland)
note: there are 18 municipalities in Greenland |
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: 25.9% (male 7,463; female 7,161)
15-64 years: 68.3% (male 20,885; female 17,605) 65 years and over: 5.8% (male 1,508; female 1,763) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, grain; livestock | forage crops, garden and greenhouse vegetables; sheep, reindeer; fish |
Airports | 76 (2000 est.) | 14 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
13 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
total: 9
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
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: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Area | total:
488,100 sq km land: 488,100 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 2,166,086 sq km
land: 2,166,086 sq km (410,449 sq km ice-free, 1,755,637 sq km ice-covered) (2000 est.) |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than California | slightly more than three times the size of Texas |
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. | The world's largest non-continental island, about 81% ice-capped, Greenland was granted self-government in 1978 by the Danish parliament. The law went into effect the following year. Denmark continues to exercise control of Greenland's foreign affairs. |
Birth rate | 28.55 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.09 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$588.6 million expenditures: $658.2 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues: $646 million
expenditures: $629 million, including capital expenditures of $85 million (1999) |
Capital | Ashgabat | Nuuk (Godthab) |
Climate | subtropical desert | arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters |
Coastline | 0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km) | 44,087 km |
Constitution | adopted 18 May 1992 | 5 June 1953 (Danish constitution) |
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: none
conventional short form: Greenland local long form: none local short form: Kalaallit Nunaat |
Currency | Turkmen manat (TMM) | Danish krone (DKK) |
Death rate | 8.98 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.66 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.5 billion (2000 est.) | $25 million (1999) |
Dependency status | - | part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1979 |
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 |
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) |
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 |
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) |
Disputes - international | Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan | uncontested dispute between Canada and Denmark over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Ellesmere Island and Greenland |
Economic aid - recipient | $27.2 million (1995) | $380 million subsidy from Denmark |
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 economy remains critically dependent on exports of fish and substantial support from the Danish Government, which supplies about half of government revenues. The public sector, including publicly owned enterprises and the municipalities, plays the dominant role in the economy. Despite several interesting hydrocarbon and minerals exploration activities, it will take several years before production can materialize. Tourism is the only sector offering any near-term potential, and even this is limited due to a short season and high costs. |
Electricity - consumption | 4.785 billion kWh (1999) | 227.9 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 4.1 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 1.1 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 8.371 billion kWh (1999) | 245 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
99.94% hydro: 0.06% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% note: Greenland is shifting its electricity production from fossil fuel to hydropower production (2001) |
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: Gunnbjorn 3,700 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 | protection of the arctic environment; preservation of the Inuit traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting |
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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | Turkmen 77%, Uzbek 9.2%, Russian 6.7%, Kazakh 2%, other 5.1% (1995) | Greenlander 88% (Inuit and Greenland-born whites), Danish and others 12% (January 2000) |
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) | Danish kroner per US dollar - 7.8947 (2002), 8.323 (2001), 8.083 (2000), 6.976 (1999), 6.701 (1998) |
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: Queen MARGRETHE II of Denmark (since 14 January 1972), represented by High Commissioner Gunnar MARTENS (since NA 1995)
head of government: Prime Minister Hans ENOKSEN (since 14 December 2002) cabinet: Home Rule Government is elected by the Parliament (Landstinget) on the basis of the strength of parties elections: the monarchy is hereditary; high commissioner appointed by the monarch; prime minister is elected by Parliament (usually the leader of the majority party); election last held 3 December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2006) election results: Hans ENOKSEN elected prime minister note: government coalition - Siumut and Inuit Ataqatigiit |
Exports | $2.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | gas 33%, oil 30%, cotton fiber 18%, textiles 8% (1999) | fish and fish products 94% (prawns 63%) |
Exports - partners | Ukraine, Iran, Turkey, Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan | Denmark 60.3%, Japan 15.5%, US 6%, Thailand 5%, Germany 4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 | two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a large disk slightly to the hoist side of center - the top half of the disk is red, the bottom half is white |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $19.6 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.1 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
25% industry: 43% services: 32% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,300 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $20,000 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 16% (2000 est.) | 1.8% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 40 00 N, 60 00 E | 72 00 N, 40 00 W |
Geography - note | landlocked | dominates North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe; sparse population confined to small settlements along coast, but close to one-quarter of the population lives in the capital, Nuuk; world's second largest ice cap |
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: NA (there are no roads between towns) (2003) |
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 (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 60%, foodstuffs 15% (1999) | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Ukraine, Turkey, Russia, Germany, US, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan | Denmark 74.6%, Norway 14.2%, Russia 2.3% (2002) |
Independence | 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union) | none (part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1979)
note: foreign affairs is the responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively participates in international agreements relating to Greenland |
Industrial production growth rate | 18% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing | fish processing (mainly shrimp and Greenland halibut), handicrafts, hides and skins, small shipyards, mining |
Infant mortality rate | 73.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 16.8 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 18.09 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 14% (2000 est.) | 1.6% (1999 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) | NC, NIB |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | NA | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 13,000 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) | High Court or Landsret (appeals can be made to the Ostre Landsret or Eastern Division of the High Court or Supreme Court in Copenhagen) |
Labor force | 2.34 million (1996) | 24,500 (1999 est.) |
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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 63% forests and woodland: 8% other: 26% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7% | Greenlandic (East Inuit), Danish, English |
Legal system | based on civil law system | Danish |
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 Parliament or Landstinget (31 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 3 December 2002 (next to be held by NA December 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - Siumut 28.7%, Inuit Ataqatigiit 25.5%, Atassut Party 20.4%, Demokratiit 15.6%, Katusseqatigiit 5.3%; seats by party - Siumut 10, Inuit Ataqatigiit 8, Atassut 7, Demokratiit 5, Katusseqatigiit 1 note: two representatives were elected to the Danish Parliament or Folketing on 20 November 2001 (next to be held no later than November 2005); percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Siumut 1, Inuit Ataqatigiit 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
61 years male: 57.43 years female: 64.76 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 69 years
male: 65.44 years female: 72.65 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% note: similar to Denmark proper |
Location | Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan | Northern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada |
Map references | Commonwealth of Independent States | Arctic Region |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | continental shelf: 200 NM or agreed boundaries or median line
exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM or agreed boundaries or median line territorial sea: 3 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: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,593 GRT/3,640 DWT
ships by type: cargo 2, passenger 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Denmark 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of Denmark |
Military branches | Ministry of Defense (Army, Air and Air Defense, Navy, Border Troops, and Internal Troops), National Guard | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $90 million (FY99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.4% (FY99) | - |
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) | June 21 (longest day) |
Nationality | noun:
Turkmen(s) adjective: Turkmen |
noun: Greenlander(s)
adjective: Greenlandic |
Natural hazards | NA | continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the island |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, sulfur, salt | zinc, lead, iron ore, coal, molybdenum, gold, platinum, uranium, fish, seals, whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas |
Net migration rate | -1.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -8.37 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 250 km; natural gas 4,400 km | - |
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 |
Akulliit Party [Bjarne KREUTZMANN]; Atassut Party (Solidarity, a conservative party favoring continuing close relations with Denmark) [Augusta SALLING]; Demokratiit [Per BERTHELSEN]; Inuit Ataqatigiit or IA (Eskimo Brotherhood, a leftist party favoring complete independence from Denmark rather than home rule) [Josef MOTZFELDT]; Issituup (Polar Party) [Nicolai HEINRICH]; Kattusseqatigiit (Candidate List, an independent right-of-center party with no official platform [leader NA]; Siumut (Forward Party, a social democratic party advocating more distinct Greenlandic identity and greater autonomy from Denmark) [Hans ENOKSEN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 4,603,244 (July 2001 est.) | 56,385 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 58% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.85% (2001 est.) | 0.01% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Turkmenbashi | Aasiaat (Egedesminde), Ilulissat (Jakobshavn), Kangerlussuaq, Nanortalik, Narsarsuaq, Nuuk (Godthab), Qaqortoq (Julianehab), Sisimiut (Holsteinsborg), Tasiilaq (March 2001) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 16, FM 8, shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 5, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 1.225 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
2,187 km broad gauge: 2,187 km 1.520-m gauge (1996 est.) |
0 km |
Religions | Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2% | Evangelical Lutheran |
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: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.19 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female total population: 1.13 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
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: adequate domestic and international service provided by satellite, cables and microwave radio relay; totally digitalized in 1995
domestic: microwave radio relay and satellite international: satellite earth stations - 12 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 2 Americom GE-2 (all Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 363,000 (1997) | 25,617 (yearend 1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,300 (1998) | 12,676 (yearend 1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (much programming relayed from Russia and Turkey) (1997) | 1 publicly-owned station, some local low-power stations, and three AFRTS (US Air Force) stations (1997) |
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 | flat to gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow, mountainous, barren, rocky coast |
Total fertility rate | 3.58 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.43 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 10% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | the Amu Darya is an important inland waterway for Turkmenistan | none |