Turkmenistan (2003) | Guyana (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 5 provinces (welayatlar, singular - welayat): Ahal Welayaty (Ashgabat), Balkan Welayaty (Balkanabat), Dashoguz Welayaty, Lebap 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 regions; Barima-Waini, Cuyuni-Mazaruni, Demerara-Mahaica, East Berbice-Corentyne, Essequibo Islands-West Demerara, Mahaica-Berbice, Pomeroon-Supenaam, Potaro-Siparuni, Upper Demerara-Berbice, Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 36.8% (male 899,954; female 855,293)
15-64 years: 59.2% (male 1,386,606; female 1,438,333) 65 years and over: 4.1% (male 74,958; female 120,400) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 26.1% (male 102,111/female 98,325)
15-64 years: 68.6% (male 266,288/female 261,620) 65 years and over: 5.3% (male 17,308/female 23,443) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, grain; livestock | sugarcane, rice, shrimp, fish, vegetable oils; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products |
Airports | 76 (2002) | 93 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 13
2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2002) |
total: 9
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 under 914 m: 6 (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 (2002) |
total: 84
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 69 (2007) |
Area | total: 488,100 sq km
land: 488,100 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 214,970 sq km
land: 196,850 sq km water: 18,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than California | slightly smaller than Idaho |
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. | Originally a Dutch colony in the 17th century, by 1815 Guyana had become a British possession. The abolition of slavery led to black settlement of urban areas and the importation of indentured servants from India to work the sugar plantations. This ethnocultural divide has persisted and has led to turbulent politics. Guyana achieved independence from the UK in 1966, and since then it has been ruled mostly by socialist-oriented governments. In 1992, Cheddi JAGAN was elected president in what is considered the country's first free and fair election since independence. After his death five years later, his wife, Janet JAGAN, became president but resigned in 1999 due to poor health. Her successor, Bharrat JAGDEO, was reelected in 2001 and again in 2006. |
Birth rate | 28.02 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 18.09 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $588.6 million
expenditures: $658.2 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues: $419.4 million
expenditures: $527.4 million (2007 est.) |
Capital | Ashgabat | name: Georgetown
geographic coordinates: 6 48 N, 58 10 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | subtropical desert | tropical; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; two rainy seasons (May to August, November to January) |
Coastline | 0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km) | 459 km |
Constitution | adopted 18 May 1992 | 6 October 1980 |
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: Cooperative Republic of Guyana
conventional short form: Guyana former: British Guiana |
Currency | Turkmen manat (TMM) | - |
Death rate | 8.87 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 8.28 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.4 billion to $5 billion (2001 est.) | $1.2 billion (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Tracey A. JACOBSON
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 David M. ROBINSON
embassy: 100 Young and Duke Streets, Kingston, Georgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 10507, Georgetown; US Embassy, 3170 Georgetown Place, Washington DC 20521-3170 telephone: [592] 225-4900 through 4909 FAX: [592] 225-8497 |
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 Bayney KARRAN
chancery: 2490 Tracy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-6900 FAX: [1] (202) 232-1297 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | prolonged regional drought creates water-sharing difficulties for Amu Darya river states; Turkmenistan has not committed to follow either Iran or the other littoral states in the division of the Caspian Sea seabed and water column; ICJ decision expected to resolve dispute with Azerbaijan over sovereignty over Caspian oilfields; demarcation of land boundary with Kazakhstan is underway - maritime boundary not resolved | all of the area west of the Essequibo River is claimed by Venezuela preventing any discussion of a maritime boundary; Guyana has expressed its intention to join Barbados in asserting claims before UNCLOS that Trinidad and Tobago's maritime boundary with Venezuela extends into their waters; Suriname claims a triangle of land between the New and Kutari/Koetari rivers in a historic dispute over the headwaters of the Courantyne; Guyana seeks arbitration under provisions of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to resolve the long-standing dispute with Suriname over the axis of the territorial sea boundary in potentially oil-rich waters |
Economic aid - recipient | $16 million from the US (2001) | $136.8 million (1995), Heavily Indebted Poor Country Initiative (HIPC) $253 million (1997) (2005) |
Economy - overview | Turkmenistan is largely desert country with intensive agriculture in irrigated oases and large gas and oil resources. One-half of its irrigated land is planted in cotton, making it the world's tenth-largest producer. 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 1998-2003, 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 by 38% in 2003, largely because of higher international oil and gas prices. Overall 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. In any event, GDP increased substantially in 2003 because of a strong recovery in agriculture and rapid industrial growth. | The Guyanese economy exhibited moderate economic growth in 2001-07, based on expansion in the agricultural and mining sectors, a more favorable atmosphere for business initiatives, a more realistic exchange rate, fairly low inflation, and the continued support of international organizations. Economic recovery since the 2005 flood-related contraction has been buoyed by increases in remittances and foreign direct investment. Chronic problems include a shortage of skilled labor and a deficient infrastructure. The government is juggling a sizable external debt against the urgent need for expanded public investment. In March 2007, the Inter-American Development Bank, Guyana's principal donor, canceled Guyana's nearly $470 million debt, equivalent to nearly 41% of GDP. The bauxite mining sector should benefit in the near term from restructuring and partial privatization, and the state-owned sugar industry will conduct efficiency increasing modernizations. Export earnings from agriculture and mining have fallen sharply, while the import bill has risen, driven by higher energy prices. Guyana's entrance into the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME) in January 2006 will broaden the country's export market, primarily in the raw materials sector. |
Electricity - consumption | 8.509 billion kWh (2001) | 750.7 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 980 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 20 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 10.18 billion kWh (2001) | 807.3 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 99.9%
hydro: 0.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
- |
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: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Roraima 2,835 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 | water pollution from sewage and agricultural and industrial chemicals; 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, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
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) | East Indian 50%, black 36%, Amerindian 7%, white, Chinese, and mixed 7% |
Exchange rates | Turkmen manats per US dollar - 5,200 (2002), 5,200 (2001), 5,200 (2000), 5,200 (1999), 4,890.17 (1998); note - the official exchange rate has not varied for the last four years; the unofficial rate has fluctuated slightly, hovering around 21,000 manats to the dollar | Guyanese dollars per US dollar - 201.89 (2007), 200.28 (2006), 200.79 (2005), 198.31 (2004), 193.88 (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 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 Bharrat JAGDEO (since 11 August 1999); note - assumed presidency after resignation of President Janet JAGAN and reelected in 2001, and again in 2006
head of government: Prime Minister Samuel HINDS (since October 1992, except for a period as chief of state after the death of President Cheddi JAGAN on 6 March 1997) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president, responsible to the legislature elections: president elected by popular vote as leader of a party list in parliamentary elections, which must be held at least every five years (no term limits); elections last held 28 August 2006 (next to be held by August 2011); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Bharrat JAGDEO reelected; percent of vote 54.6% |
Exports | NA (2001) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | gas 57%, oil 26%, cotton fiber 3%, textiles 2% (2001) | sugar, gold, bauxite, alumina, rice, shrimp, molasses, rum, timber |
Exports - partners | Ukraine 49.7%, Italy 18%, Iran 13.1%, Turkey 6.2% (2002) | US 18.8%, Canada 18.4%, UK 8.7%, Portugal 6.5%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.9%, Netherlands 4.3%, Belgium 4.3%, Jamaica 4.1% (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 | green, with a red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) superimposed on a long, yellow arrowhead; there is a narrow, black border between the red and yellow, and a narrow, white border between the yellow and the green |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $31.34 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 27%
industry: 50% services: 23% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 35.2%
industry: 19% services: 45.8% (2007 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,700 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 21.1% (2002 est.) | 4.5% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 40 00 N, 60 00 E | 5 00 N, 59 00 W |
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 | the third-smallest country in South America after Suriname and Uruguay; substantial portions of its western and eastern territories are claimed by Venezuela and Suriname respectively |
Highways | total: 24,000 km
paved: 19,488 km unpaved: 4,512 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 31.7% (1998) |
lowest 10%: 1.3%
highest 10%: 33.8% (1999) |
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 | transshipment point for narcotics from South America - primarily Venezuela - to Europe and the US; producer of cannabis; rising money laundering related to drug trafficking and human smuggling |
Imports | NA (2001) | 10,070 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 60%, foodstuffs 15% (1999) | manufactures, machinery, petroleum, food |
Imports - partners | Russia 19.8%, Turkey 12.8%, Ukraine 11.7%, UAE 10%, US 7.5%, China 6%, Germany 5.7%, Iran 4.4% (2002) | Trinidad and Tobago 23%, US 21.3%, China 9.7%, Cuba 6.3%, UK 4.5% (2006) |
Independence | 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union) | 26 May 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 1% (2002 est.) | 2% (2007 est.) |
Industries | natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing | bauxite, sugar, rice milling, timber, textiles, gold mining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 73.17 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 76.9 deaths/1,000 live births female: 69.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 31.35 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 34.93 deaths/1,000 live births female: 27.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5% (2002 est.) | 10.4% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | AsDB, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, 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, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (subscriber), ITU, ITUC, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OIC, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 | - |
Irrigated land | 17,500 sq km (2003 est.) | 1,500 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) | Supreme Court of Judicature, consisting of the High Court and the Judicial Court of Appeal, with right of final appeal to the Caribbean Court of Justice |
Labor force | 2.34 million (1996) | 418,000 (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 48%, industry 15%, services 37% (1998 est.) | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
Land boundaries | total: 3,736 km
border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km |
total: 2,949 km
border countries: Brazil 1,606 km, Suriname 600 km, Venezuela 743 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.47%
permanent crops: 0.14% other: 96.39% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 2.23%
permanent crops: 0.14% other: 97.63% (2005) |
Languages | Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7% | English, Amerindian dialects, Creole, Caribbean Hindustani (a dialect of Hindi), Urdu |
Legal system | based on civil law system | based on English common law with certain admixtures of Roman-Dutch law; 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 at least yearly) 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 Assembly (65 seats; members elected by popular vote, also not more than 4 non-elected non-voting ministers and 2 non-elected non-voting parliamentary secretaries appointed by the president; to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 28 August 2006 (next to be held by August 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - PPP/C 54.6%, PNC/R 34%, AFC 8.1%, other 3.3%; seats by party - PPP/C 36, PNC/R 22, AFC 5, other 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 61.19 years
male: 57.72 years female: 64.84 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 66.17 years
male: 63.52 years female: 68.95 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98.8% male: 99.1% female: 98.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Suriname and Venezuela |
Map references | Asia | South America |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the outer edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,873 GRT/8,345 DWT
ships by type: combination ore/oil 1, petroleum tanker 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 7 ships (1000 GRT or over) 12,516 GRT/14,193 DWT
by type: cargo 5, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1 registered in other countries: 2 (St Vincent and The Grenadines 2, unknown 1) (2007) |
Military branches | Ministry of Defense (Army, Air and Air Defense, Navy, Border Troops, and Internal Troops), National Guard | Guyana Defense Force: Army (includes Coast Guard, Air Corps) (2007) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $90 million (FY99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.4% (FY99) | 1.8% (2006) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,239,737 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,005,686 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 53,825 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 October (1991) | Republic Day, 23 February (1970) |
Nationality | noun: Turkmen(s)
adjective: Turkmen |
noun: Guyanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Guyanese |
Natural hazards | NA | flash floods are a constant threat during rainy seasons |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, sulfur, salt | bauxite, gold, diamonds, hardwood timber, shrimp, fish |
Net migration rate | -0.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -7.47 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 6,634 km; oil 853 km (2003) | - |
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; the two most prominent opposition groups-in-exile have been Gundogar and Erkin; Gundogar was led by former Foreign Minister Boris SHIKHUMRADOV until his arrest and imprisonment in the wake of the 25 November 2002 assassination attempt on President NIYAZOV; Erkin is led by former Foreign Minister Abdy KULIEV and is based out of Moscow |
Alliance for Change or AFC [Raphael TROTMAN and Khemraj RAMJATTAN]; Guyana Action Party or GAP [Paul HARDY]; Justice for All Party [C.N. SHARMA]; People's National Congress/Reform or PNC/R [Robert Herman Orlando CORBIN]; People's Progressive Party/Civic or PPP/C [Bharrat JAGDEO]; Rise, Organize, and Rebuild or ROAR [Ravi DEV]; The United Force or TUF [Manzoor NADIR]; The Unity Party [Joey JAGAN]; Vision Guyana [Peter RAMSAROOP]; Working People's Alliance or WPA [Rupert ROOPNARAINE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Amerindian People's Association; Guyana Citizens Initiative; Guyana Bar Association; Guyana Human Rights Association; Guyana Public Service Union or GPSU; Private Sector Commission; Trades Union Congress |
Population | 4,775,544 (July 2003 est.) | 769,095
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 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 34.4% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.82% (2003 est.) | 0.234% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Turkmenbasy | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 16, FM 8, shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 3, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | total: 2,440 km
broad gauge: 2,440 km 1.520-m gauge (2002) |
- |
Religions | Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2% | Christian 50%, Hindu 35%, Muslim 10%, other 5% |
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 (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.039 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.018 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.738 male(s)/female total population: 1.006 male(s)/female (2007 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: fair system for long-distance service
domestic: microwave radio relay network for trunk lines; fixed-line teledensity is about 15 per 100 persons; many areas still lack fixed-line telephone services; mobile-cellular teledensity reached 37 per 100 persons in 2005 international: country code - 592; tropospheric scatter to Trinidad; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 363,000 (1997) | 110,100 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,300 (1998) | 281,400 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (much programming relayed from Russia and Turkey) (1997) | 3 (1 public station; 2 private stations which relay US satellite services) (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 rolling highlands; low coastal plain; savanna in south |
Total fertility rate | 3.5 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.04 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 9.1% (understated) (2000) |
Waterways | the Amu Darya is an important inland waterway for Turkmenistan, as is the man-made Kara Kum canal | Berbice, Demerara, and Essequibo rivers are navigable by oceangoing vessels for 150 km, 100 km, and 80 km respectively (2006) |