Turkmenistan (2001) | Solomon Islands (2008) | |
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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) |
9 provinces and 1 capital territory*; Central, Choiseul, Guadalcanal, Honiara*, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Rennell and Bellona, Temotu, Western |
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: 40.7% (male 117,739/female 113,125)
15-64 years: 55.9% (male 160,310/female 156,773) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 9,036/female 9,859) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, grain; livestock | cocoa beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; timber; cattle, pigs; fish |
Airports | 76 (2000 est.) | 35 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
13 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
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: 33
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 23 (2007) |
Area | total:
488,100 sq km land: 488,100 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 28,450 sq km
land: 27,540 sq km water: 910 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. | The UK established a protectorate over the Solomon Islands in the 1890s. Some of the bitterest fighting of World War II occurred on this archipelago. Self-government was achieved in 1976 and independence two years later. Ethnic violence, government malfeasance, and endemic crime have undermined stability and civil society. In June 2003, then Prime Minister Sir Allen KEMAKEZA sought the assistance of Australia in reestablishing law and order; the following month, an Australian-led multinational force arrived to restore peace and disarm ethnic militias. The Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) has generally been effective in restoring law and order and rebuilding government institutions. |
Birth rate | 28.55 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 29.27 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$588.6 million expenditures: $658.2 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues: $49.7 million
expenditures: $75.1 million (2003) |
Capital | Ashgabat | name: Honiara
geographic coordinates: 9 26 S, 159 57 E time difference: UTC+11 (16 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | subtropical desert | tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather |
Coastline | 0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km) | 5,313 km |
Constitution | adopted 18 May 1992 | 7 July 1978 |
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: Solomon Islands local long form: none local short form: Solomon Islands former: British Solomon Islands |
Currency | Turkmen manat (TMM) | - |
Death rate | 8.98 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 3.87 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.5 billion (2000 est.) | $166 million (2004) |
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 Solomon Islands (embassy closed July 1993); the ambassador to Papua New Guinea is accredited to the Solomon Islands |
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 Collin David BECK
chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400L, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 599-6192, 6193 FAX: [1] (212) 661-8925 |
Disputes - international | Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan | since 2003, the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI), consisting of police, military, and civilian advisors drawn from 15 countries, has assisted in reestablishing and maintaining civil and political order while reinforcing regional stability and security |
Economic aid - recipient | $27.2 million (1995) | $198.2 million annually, mainly from Australia (2005 est.) |
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 bulk of the population depends on agriculture, fishing, and forestry for at least part of its livelihood. Most manufactured goods and petroleum products must be imported. The islands are rich in undeveloped mineral resources such as lead, zinc, nickel, and gold. Prior to the arrival of the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI), severe ethnic violence, the closing of key businesses, and an empty government treasury culminated in economic collapse. RAMSI's efforts to restore law and order and economic stability have led to modest growth as the economy rebuilds. |
Electricity - consumption | 4.785 billion kWh (1999) | 55.8 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 4.1 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 1.1 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 8.371 billion kWh (1999) | 60 million kWh (2005) |
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: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 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 | deforestation; soil erosion; many of the surrounding coral reefs are dead or dying |
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, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
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) | Melanesian 94.5%, Polynesian 3%, Micronesian 1.2%, other 1.1%, unspecified 0.2% (1999 census) |
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) | Solomon Islands dollars per US dollar - NA (2007), 7.3447 (2006), 7.5299 (2005), 7.4847 (2004), 7.5059 (2003) |
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 ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Nathaniel WAENA (since 7 July 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Derek SIKUA (since 20 December 2007); note - Prime Minister Manasseh SOGAVARE defeated in a no confidence vote in parliament on 13 December 2007; SIKUA elected on 20 December 2007 cabinet: Cabinet consists of 20 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister from among the members of Parliament elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the advice of Parliament for up to five years (eligible for a second term); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by Parliament; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister from among the members of Parliament |
Exports | $2.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | gas 33%, oil 30%, cotton fiber 18%, textiles 8% (1999) | timber, fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa |
Exports - partners | Ukraine, Iran, Turkey, Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan | China 48%, South Korea 9.5%, Japan 8.9%, Thailand 4.7%, Italy 4.4%, Philippines 4.2% (2006) |
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 | divided diagonally by a thin yellow stripe from the lower hoist-side corner; the upper triangle (hoist side) is blue with five white five-pointed stars arranged in an X pattern; the lower triangle is green |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $19.6 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
25% industry: 43% services: 32% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 42%
industry: 11% services: 47% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,300 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 16% (2000 est.) | 4.4% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 40 00 N, 60 00 E | 8 00 S, 159 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked | strategic location on sea routes between the South Pacific Ocean, the Solomon Sea, and the Coral Sea; on 2 April 2007 an undersea earthquake measuring 8.1 on the Richter scale occurred 345 km WNW of the capital Honiara, the resulting tsunami devastated coastal areas of Western and Choiseul provinces with dozens of deaths and thousands dislocated; the provincial capital of Gizo was especially hard hit |
Government - note | - | by the end of 2007, the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) - originally made up of police and troops from Australia, NZ, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and Tonga - had been scaled back to 303 police officers, 197 civilian technical advisers, and 72 military advisers from 15 countries across the region |
Heliports | - | 3 (2007) |
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) |
- |
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.) | 1,296 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 60%, foodstuffs 15% (1999) | food, plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Ukraine, Turkey, Russia, Germany, US, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan | Australia 25.5%, Singapore 23.5%, Japan 7.8%, NZ 5.1%, Fiji 4.2%, Papua New Guinea 4.1% (2006) |
Independence | 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union) | 7 July 1978 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 18% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing | fish (tuna), mining, timber |
Infant mortality rate | 73.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 19.97 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 22.8 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 14% (2000 est.) | 6.6% (2005 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) | ACP, ADB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, MIGA, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | NA | - |
Irrigated land | 13,000 sq km (1993 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) | Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 2.34 million (1996) | 249,200 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 44%, industry 19%, services 37% (1996) | agriculture: 75%
industry: 5% services: 20% (2000 est.) |
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: 0.62%
permanent crops: 2.04% other: 97.34% (2005) |
Languages | Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7% | Melanesian pidgin in much of the country is lingua franca; English (official; but spoken by only 1%-2% of the population); 120 indigenous languages |
Legal system | based on civil law system | English common law, which is widely disregarded |
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 National Parliament (50 seats; members elected from single-member constituencies by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 5 April 2006 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - National Party 6.9%, PAP 6.3%, SIPRA 6.3%, Liberal 5%, Democratic 4.9%, SOCRED 4.3%, LAFARI 2.8%, independents 60.3%; seats by party - National Party 4, SIPRA 4, Democratic 3, PAP 3, LAFARI 2, Liberal 2, SOCRED 2, independents 30 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
61 years male: 57.43 years female: 64.76 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 73.16 years
male: 70.64 years female: 75.81 years (2007 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 |
Location | Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan | Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New Guinea |
Map references | Commonwealth of Independent States | Oceania |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 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.) |
- |
Military branches | Ministry of Defense (Army, Air and Air Defense, Navy, Border Troops, and Internal Troops), National Guard | no regular military forces; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $90 million (FY99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.4% (FY99) | 3% (2006) |
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, 7 July (1978) |
Nationality | noun:
Turkmen(s) adjective: Turkmen |
noun: Solomon Islander(s)
adjective: Solomon Islander |
Natural hazards | NA | typhoons, but rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earthquakes, tremors, and volcanic activity; tsunamis |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, sulfur, salt | fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel |
Net migration rate | -1.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 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 |
Association of Independent Members or AIM [Thomas CHAN]; Christian Alliance Solomon Islands or CASI [Edward RONIA]; LAFARI Party [John GARO]; National Party [Francis HILLY]; People's Alliance Party or PAP [Sir Allan KEMAKEZA]; Social Credit Party or SOCRED [Manasseh Damukana SOGAVARE]; Solomon First Party [David QUAN]; Solomon Islands Democratic Party [Gabriel SURI]; Solomon Islands Labor Party or SILP [Joses TUHANUKU]; Solomon Islands Liberal Party [Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU]; Solomon Islands Party for Rural Advancement or SIPRA [Job D. TAUSINGA]; United Party [Sir Peter KENILOREA]
note: in general, Solomon Islands politics is characterized by fluid coalitions |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Isatabu Freedom Movement (IFM); Malaita Eagle Force (MEF); note - these rival armed ethnic factions crippled the Solomon Islands in a wave of violence from 1999 to 2003 |
Population | 4,603,244 (July 2001 est.) | 566,842 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 58% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.85% (2001 est.) | 2.54% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Turkmenbashi | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 16, FM 8, shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2004) |
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% | Church of Melanesia 32.8%, Roman Catholic 19%, South Seas Evangelical 17%, Seventh-Day Adventist 11.2%, United Church 10.3%, Christian Fellowship Church 2.4%, other Christian 4.4%, other 2.4%, unspecified 0.3%, none 0.2% (1999 census) |
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: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.041 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.023 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.917 male(s)/female total population: 1.026 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 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: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 677; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 363,000 (1997) | 7,400 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,300 (1998) | 6,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (much programming relayed from Russia and Turkey) (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 | mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls |
Total fertility rate | 3.58 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 3.78 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA% |
Waterways | the Amu Darya is an important inland waterway for Turkmenistan | - |