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Compare Turkmenistan (2002) - Lesotho (2002)

Compare Turkmenistan (2002) z Lesotho (2002)

 Turkmenistan (2002)Lesotho (2002)
 TurkmenistanLesotho
Administrative divisions 5 provinces (welayatlar, singular - welayat): Ahal Welayaty (Ashgabat), Balkan Welayaty (Balkanabat), Dasoguz Welayaty, Labap Welayaty (Turkmenabat), Mary Welayaty


note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses)
10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka
Age structure 0-14 years: 37.3% (male 895,536; female 853,301)


15-64 years: 58.6% (male 1,350,142; female 1,399,879)


65 years and over: 4.1% (male 72,784; female 117,321) (2002 est.)
0-14 years: 39% (male 433,229; female 427,926)


15-64 years: 56.3% (male 600,476; female 642,538)


65 years and over: 4.7% (male 43,691; female 60,094) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products cotton, grain; livestock corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock
Airports 76 (2001) 28 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total: 13


2,438 to 3,047 m: 9


1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2002)
total: 4


over 3,047 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 2 (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 (2002)
total: 24


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 20 (2002)
Area total: 488,100 sq km


land: 488,100 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total: 30,355 sq km


land: 30,355 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. Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 23 years of military rule.
Birth rate 28.27 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) 30.72 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues: $588.6 million


expenditures: $658.2 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) (1999 est.)
revenues: $76 million


expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million
Capital Ashgabat Maseru
Climate subtropical desert temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers
Coastline 0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km) 0 km (landlocked)
Constitution adopted 18 May 1992 2 April 1993
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: Kingdom of Lesotho


conventional short form: Lesotho


former: Basutoland
Currency Turkmen manat (TMM) loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR)
Death rate 8.92 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) 16.81 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $2.3 billion to $5 billion (2001 est.) $715 million (2001 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Laura E. KENNEDY


embassy: 9 Pushkin Street, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan 774000


mailing address: use embassy street address


telephone: [9] (9312) 35-00-45


FAX: [9] (9312) 39-26-14
chief of mission: Ambassador Robert G. LOFTIS


embassy: 254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section)


mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho


telephone: [266] 312666


FAX: [266] 310116
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Mered Bairamovich ORAZOV


chancery: 2207 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 588-1500


FAX: [1] (202) 588-0697
chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Lebohang Kenneth MOLEKO


chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536


FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815
Disputes - international Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan wrestle with sharing limited water resources and regional environmental degradation caused by the shrinking of the Aral Sea; multilaterally-accepted Caspian Sea seabed and maritime boundaries have not yet been established in the Caspian - Iran insists on division of Caspian Sea into five equal sectors while Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan have generally agreed upon equidistant seabed boundaries; Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan await ICJ decision to resolve sovereignty dispute over oil fields in the Caspian Sea none
Economic aid - recipient $16 million from the US (2001) $123.7 million (1995) (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 1998-2001, Turkmenistan has 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 have risen sharply because of higher international oil and gas prices. Prospects in the near future are discouraging because of widespread internal poverty, the burden of foreign debt, and the unwillingness of the government to adopt market-oriented reforms. However, Turkmenistan's cooperation with the international community in transporting humanitarian aid to Afghanistan may foreshadow a change in the atmosphere for foreign investment, aid, and technological support. Turkmenistan's economic statistics are state secrets, and GDP and other figures are subject to wide margins of error. Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho's primary natural resource is water. Its economy is based on subsistence agriculture, livestock, remittances from miners employed in South Africa, and a rapidly growing apparel-assembly sector. The number of mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years. A small manufacturing base depends largely on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries. Agricultural products are exported primarily to South Africa. Proceeds from membership in a common customs union with South Africa form the majority of government revenue. Although drought has decreased agricultural activity over the past few years, completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa, generating royalties for Lesotho. The pace of privatization has increased in recent years. In December 1999, the government embarked on a nine-month IMF staff-monitored program aimed at structural adjustment and stabilization of macroeconomic fundamentals. The government is in the process of applying for a three-year successor program with the IMF under its Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility. Lesotho has a marked inequality in income distribution and serious unemployment/underemployment problems that will not yield to short-run solutions.
Electricity - consumption 7.708 billion kWh (2000) 100 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 900 million kWh (2000) 0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2000) 100 million kWh


note: electricity supplied by South Africa (2000)
Electricity - production 9.256 billion kWh (2000) 0 kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2000)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel: 100%


hydro: 0%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2000)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point: Vpadina Akchanaya -81 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: junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m


highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 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 population pressure forcing settlement in marginal areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, and soil exhaustion; desertification; Highlands Water Project controls, stores, and redirects water to South Africa
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, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection


signed, but not ratified: Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping
Ethnic groups Turkmen 77%, Uzbek 9.2%, Russian 6.7%, Kazakh 2%, other 5.1% (1995) Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%,
Exchange rates Turkmen manats per US dollar - 5,200 (January 2002-January 2000), 5,350 (January 1999), 4,070 (January 1997) maloti per US dollar - 11.58786 (January 2002), 8.60918 (2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997); note - the Lesotho loti is at par with the South African rand which is also legal tender; maloti is the plural form of loti
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 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: King LETSIE III (since 7 February 1996); note - King LETSIE III formerly occupied the throne from November 1990 to February 1995, while his father was in exile


head of government: Prime Minister Pakalitha MOSISILI (since 23 May 1998)


cabinet: Cabinet


elections: none; according to the constitution, the leader of the majority party in the Assembly automatically becomes prime minister; the monarch is hereditary, but, under the terms of the constitution which came into effect after the March 1993 election, the monarch is a "living symbol of national unity" with no executive or legislative powers; under traditional law the college of chiefs has the power to determine who is next in the line of succession, who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age, and may even depose the monarch
Exports $2.7 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) $250 million f.o.b. (2001 est.)
Exports - commodities gas 33%, oil 30%, cotton fiber 18%, textiles 8% (1999) manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals
Exports - partners Ukraine 27%, Iran 14%, Turkey 11%, Italy 9%, Switzerland 5% (1999) South African Customs Union 53.9%, North America 45.6% (1999)
Fiscal year calendar year 1 April - 31 March
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 from the lower hoist side corner; the upper half is white, bearing the brown silhouette of a large shield with crossed spear and club; the lower half is a diagonal blue band with a green triangle in the corner
GDP purchasing power parity - $21.5 billion (2001 est.) purchasing power parity - $5.3 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 27%


industry: 45%


services: 28% (2000 est.)
agriculture: 18%


industry: 38%


services: 44% (2001)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $4,700 (2001 est.) purchasing power parity - $2,450 (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 10% (2001 est.) 2.6% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates 40 00 N, 60 00 E 29 30 S, 28 30 E
Geography - note landlocked; the western and central low-lying, desolate portions of the country make up the great Garagum (Kara-Kum) desert, which occupies over 80% of the country; eastern part is plateau landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level
Highways total: 22,000 km


paved: 18,000 km (includes some all-weather gravel-surfaced roads)


unpaved: 4,000 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1996)
total: 4,955 km


paved: 887 km


unpaved: 4,068 km (1996)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 3%


highest 10%: 32% (1998) (1998)
lowest 10%: 1%


highest 10%: 43% (1986-87)
Illicit drugs 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; small-scale government-run eradication of illicit crops; transit point for heroin precursor chemicals bound for Afghanistan -
Imports $2.3 billion c.i.f. (2001 est.) $720 million f.o.b. (2001 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment 60%, foodstuffs 15% (1999) food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products
Imports - partners Turkey 17%, Ukraine 12%, Russia 11%, UAE 8%, France 6% (1999) South African Customs Union 89.5%, Asia 7% (1999)
Independence 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union) 4 October 1966 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate NA% 15.5% (1999 est.)
Industries natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism
Infant mortality rate 73.21 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) 82.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 10% (2001 est.) 6.9% (2001 est.)
International organization participation AsDB, CCC, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) NA 1 (2000)
Irrigated land 18,000 sq km (1998 est.) 10 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court
Labor force 2.34 million (1996) (1996) 700,000 economically active
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 48%, industry 15%, services 37% (1998 est.) 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa
Land boundaries total: 3,736 km


border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km
total: 909 km


border countries: South Africa 909 km
Land use arable land: 3.47%


permanent crops: 0.14%


other: 96.39% (1998 est.)
arable land: 10.71%


permanent crops: 0%


other: 89.29% (1998 est.)
Languages Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7% Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa
Legal system based on civil law system based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (120 seats, 80 by direct popular vote and 40 by proportional vote; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms); note - number of seats in the Assembly rose from 80 to 120 in the May 2002 election


elections: last held 25 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007)


election results: percent of vote by party - LCD 54%, BNP 21%, LPC 7%, other 18%; seats by party - LCD 76, BNP 21, LPC 5, other 18
Life expectancy at birth total population: 61.1 years


male: 57.57 years


female: 64.8 years (2002 est.)
total population: 47 years


male: 46.3 years


female: 47.8 years (2002 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: 83%


male: 72%


female: 93% (1999 est.)
Location Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa
Map references Asia Africa
Maritime claims none (landlocked) none (landlocked)
Merchant marine total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,600 GRT/5,000 DWT


ships by type: petroleum tanker 1 (2002 est.)
-
Military - note - The Lesotho Government in 1999 began an open debate on the future structure, size, and role of the armed forces, especially considering the Lesotho Defense Force's (LDF) history of intervening in political affairs.
Military branches Ministry of Defense (Army, Air and Air Defense, Navy, Border Troops, and Internal Troops), National Guard Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; including Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police
Military expenditures - dollar figure $90 million (FY99) $34 million (1999)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 3.4% (FY99) NA%
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 1,206,920 (2002 est.) males age 15-49: 526,332 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 979,282 (2002 est.) males age 15-49: 283,203 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age 18 years of age (2002 est.) -
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males: 48,292 (2002 est.) -
National holiday Independence Day, 27 October (1991) Independence Day, 4 October (1966)
Nationality noun: Turkmen(s)


adjective: Turkmen
noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)


adjective: Basotho
Natural hazards NA periodic droughts
Natural resources petroleum, natural gas, coal, sulfur, salt water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals
Net migration rate -0.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) -0.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 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
Basotho Congress Party or BCP [Tseliso MAKHAKHE]; Basotho National Party or BNP [Maj. Gen. Justine Metsing LEKHANYA]; Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD [Phebe MOTEBANO, chairwoman; Pakalitha MOSISILI, leader] - the governing party; Lesotho People's Congress or LPC [Kelebone MAOPE]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Charles MOFELI]; Marematlou Freedom Party or MFP and Setlamo Alliance [Vincent MALEBO]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Chief Peete Nkoebe PEETE]; Sefate Democratic Party or SDP [Bofihla NKUEBE]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA NA
Population 4,688,963 (July 2002 est.) 2,207,954


note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line 34% (2001 est.) 49% (1999 est.)
Population growth rate 1.84% (2002 est.) 1.33% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors Turkmenbasy none
Radio broadcast stations AM 16, FM 8, shortwave 2 (1998) AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios 1.225 million (1997) NA (2002)
Railways total: 2,440 km


broad gauge: 2,440 km 1.520-m gauge (2001)
total: 2.6 km; note - owned by, operated by, and included in the statistics of South Africa


narrow gauge: 2.6 km 1.067-m gauge (1995)
Religions Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2% Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20%
Sex ratio at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female


total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 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: 0.73 male(s)/female


total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 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: rudimentary system


domestic: consists of a few landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a minor radiotelephone communication system; a cellular mobile telephone system is growing


international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use 363,000 (1997) 22,200 (2000)
Telephones - mobile cellular 4,300 (1998) 21,600 (2000)
Television broadcast stations 3 (much programming relayed from Russia and Turkey) (1997) 1 (2000)
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 highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains
Total fertility rate 3.54 children born/woman (2002 est.) 4.01 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate NA% 45% (2000 est.)
Waterways the Amu Darya is an important inland waterway for Turkmenistan none
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