Turkmenistan (2003) | Mongolia (2001) | |
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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) |
18 provinces (aymguud, singular - aymag) and 3 municipalities* (hotuud, singular - hot); Arhangay, Bayanhongor, Bayan-Olgiy, Bulgan, Darhan*, Dornod, Dornogovi, Dundgovi, Dzavhan, Erdenet*, Govi-Altay, Hentiy, Hovd, Hovsgol, Omnogovi, Ovorhangay, Selenge, Suhbaatar, Tov, Ulaanbaatar*, Uvs
note: there may be a new province named Gobi-Sumber; further, there may now be 21 provinces and 1 capital city instead of 18 provinces and 3 municipalities |
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:
32.99% (male 445,252; female 430,758) 15-64 years: 63.13% (male 837,771; female 838,384) 65 years and over: 3.88% (male 44,436; female 58,398) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, grain; livestock | wheat, barley, potatoes, forage crops; sheep, goats, cattle, camels, horses |
Airports | 76 (2002) | 34 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 13
2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2002) |
total:
8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 63
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 41 (2002) |
total:
26 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 488,100 sq km
land: 488,100 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
1.565 million sq km land: 1.565 million sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than California | slightly smaller than Alaska |
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. | Long a province of China, Mongolia won its independence in 1921 with Soviet backing. A communist regime was installed in 1924. During the early 1990s, the ex-communist Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) gradually yielded its monopoly on power. In 1996, the Democratic Union Coalition (DUC) defeated the MPRP in a national election. Over the next four years the Coalition implemented a number of key reforms to modernize the economy and institutionalize democratic reforms. However, the former communists were a strong opposition that stalled additional reforms and made implementation difficult. In 2000, the MPRP won 72 of the 76 seats in Parliament and completely reshuffled the government. While it continues many of the reform policies, the MPRP is focusing on social welfare and public order priorities. |
Birth rate | 28.02 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 21.8 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $588.6 million
expenditures: $658.2 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues:
$262 million expenditures: $328 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Ashgabat | Ulaanbaatar |
Climate | subtropical desert | desert; continental (large daily and seasonal temperature ranges) |
Coastline | 0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | adopted 18 May 1992 | 12 February 1992 |
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: Mongolia local long form: none local short form: Mongol Uls former: Outer Mongolia |
Currency | Turkmen manat (TMM) | togrog/tugrik (MNT) |
Death rate | 8.87 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 7.1 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.4 billion to $5 billion (2001 est.) | $760 million (2000 est.) |
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 John DINGER embassy: inner north side of the Big Ring, just west of the Selbe Gol, Ulaanbaatar mailing address: United States Embassy in Mongolia, P. O. Box 1021, Ulaanbaatar 13; PSC 461, Box 300, FPO AP 96521-0002 telephone: [976] (11) 329095 FAX: [976] (11) 320776 |
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 Jalbuugiyn CHOINHOR chancery: 2833 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 333-7117 FAX: [1] (202) 298-9227 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 | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $16 million from the US (2001) | $200 million (1998 est.) |
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. | Economic activity traditionally has been based on agriculture and breeding of livestock. Mongolia also has extensive mineral deposits: copper, coal, molybdenum, tin, tungsten, and gold account for a large part of industrial production. Soviet assistance, at its height one-third of GDP, disappeared almost overnight in 1990-91, at the time of the dismantlement of the USSR. Mongolia was driven into deep recession, which was prolonged by the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party's (MPRP) reluctance to undertake serious economic reform. The Democratic Coalition (DC) government has embraced free-market economics, easing price controls, liberalizing domestic and international trade, and attempting to restructure the banking system and the energy sector. Major domestic privatization programs were undertaken, as well as the fostering of foreign investment through international tender of the oil distribution company, a leading cashmere company, and banks. Reform was held back by the ex-communist MPRP opposition and by the political instability brought about through four successive governments under the DC. Economic growth picked up in 1997-99 after stalling in 1996 due to a series of natural disasters and declines in world prices of copper and cashmere. In August and September 1999, the economy suffered from a temporary Russian ban on exports of oil and oil products, and Mongolia remains vulnerable in this sector. Mongolia joined the World Trade Organization (WTrO) in 1997. The international donor community pledged over $300 million per year at the last Consultative Group Meeting, held in Ulaanbaatar in June 1999. The MPRP government, elected in July 2000, is anxious to improve the investment climate; it must also deal with a heavy burden of external debt. |
Electricity - consumption | 8.509 billion kWh (2001) | 2.767 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 980 million kWh (2001) | 80 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 20 million kWh (2001) | 363 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 10.18 billion kWh (2001) | 2.671 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 99.9%
hydro: 0.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
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:
Hoh Nuur 518 m highest point: Nayramadlin Orgil (Huyten Orgil) 4,374 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 | limited natural fresh water resources in some areas; policies of the former communist regime promoting rapid urbanization and industrial growth have raised concerns about their negative effects on the environment; the burning of soft coal in power plants and the lack of enforcement of environmental laws have severely polluted the air in Ulaanbaatar; deforestation, overgrazing, the converting of virgin land to agricultural production have increased soil erosion from wind and rain; desertification and mining activities have also had a deleterious effect on the environment |
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, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands 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) | Mongol (predominantly Khalkha) 85%, Turkic (of which Kazakh is the largest group) 7%, Tungusic 4.6%, other (including Chinese and Russian) 3.4% (1998) |
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 | togrogs/tugriks per US dollar - 1,097.00 (December 2000), 1,076.67 (2000), 1,072.37 (1999), 840.83 (1998), 789.99 (1997), 548.40 (1996) |
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 Natsagiyn BAGABANDI (since 20 June 1997) head of government: Prime Minister Nambaryn ENKHBAYAR (since 26 July 2000) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the State Great Hural in consultation with the president elections: president nominated by parties in the State Great Hural and elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 20 May 2001 (next to be held NA May 2005); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by the State Great Hural; election last held 2 July 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Natsagiyn BAGABANDI reelected president; percent of vote - NA%; Nambaryn ENKHBAYAR elected prime minister by a vote in the State Great Hural of 68 to 3 |
Exports | NA (2001) | $454.3 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Exports - commodities | gas 57%, oil 26%, cotton fiber 3%, textiles 2% (2001) | copper, livestock, animal products, cashmere, wool, hides, fluorspar, other nonferrous metals |
Exports - partners | Ukraine 49.7%, Italy 18%, Iran 13.1%, Turkey 6.2% (2002) | China 60%, US 20%, Russia 9%, Japan 2% (2000 est.) |
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 | three equal, vertical bands of red (hoist side), blue, and red; centered on the hoist-side red band in yellow is the national emblem ("soyombo" - a columnar arrangement of abstract and geometric representation for fire, sun, moon, earth, water, and the yin-yang symbol) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $31.34 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4.7 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 27%
industry: 50% services: 23% (2001 est.) |
agriculture:
36% industry: 22% services: 42% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,700 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,780 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 21.1% (2002 est.) | -1% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 40 00 N, 60 00 E | 46 00 N, 105 00 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; strategic location between China and Russia |
Highways | total: 24,000 km
paved: 19,488 km unpaved: 4,512 km (1999 est.) |
total:
3,387 km paved: 1,563 km unpaved: 1,824 km note: there are also 45,862 km of rural roads that consist of rough, unimproved, cross-country tracks (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 31.7% (1998) |
lowest 10%:
2.9% highest 10%: 24.5% (1995) |
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 | NA (2001) | $510.7 million (c.i.f., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 60%, foodstuffs 15% (1999) | machinery and equipment, fuels, food products, industrial consumer goods, chemicals, building materials, sugar, tea |
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) | Russia 33%, China 21%, Japan 12%, South Korea 10%, US 4% (1999) |
Independence | 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union) | 11 July 1921 (from China) |
Industrial production growth rate | 1% (2002 est.) | 2.4% (2000 est.) |
Industries | natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing | construction materials, mining (particularly coal and copper); food and beverages, processing of animal products |
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.) |
53.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5% (2002 est.) | 7.6% (1999) |
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) | ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (observer), CCC, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 | 5 (2001) |
Irrigated land | 17,500 sq km (2003 est.) | 800 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) | Supreme Court (serves as appeals court for people's and provincial courts, but rarely overturns verdicts of lower courts; judges are nominated by the General Council of Courts for approval by the president) |
Labor force | 2.34 million (1996) | 1.3 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 48%, industry 15%, services 37% (1998 est.) | primarily herding/agricultural |
Land boundaries | total: 3,736 km
border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km |
total:
8,161.9 km border countries: China 4,676.9 km, Russia 3,485 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.47%
permanent crops: 0.14% other: 96.39% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
5.7% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 81% forests and woodland: 11.4% other: 1.9% (2000 est.) |
Languages | Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7% | Khalkha Mongol 90%, Turkic, Russian (1999) |
Legal system | based on civil law system | blend of Russian, Chinese, Turkish, and Western systems of law that combines aspects of a parliamentary system with some aspects of a presidential system; constitution ambiguous on judicial review of legislative acts; 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 State Great Hural (76 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 2 July 2000 (next to be held NA July 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MPRP 72, other 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 61.19 years
male: 57.72 years female: 64.84 years (2003 est.) |
total population:
64.26 years male: 62.14 years female: 66.5 years (2001 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: 97% male: 98% female: 97.5% (2000) |
Location | Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan | Northern Asia, between China and Russia |
Map references | Asia | Asia |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
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.) |
- |
Military branches | Ministry of Defense (Army, Air and Air Defense, Navy, Border Troops, and Internal Troops), National Guard | Mongolian Armed Forces (includes General Purpose Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces, Civil Defense Troops); note - Border Troops are under Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs in peacetime |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $90 million (FY99) | $25.5 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.4% (FY99) | 2.3% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,239,737 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
748,779 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,005,686 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
486,491 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 53,825 (2003 est.) | males:
30,230 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 October (1991) | Independence Day/Revolution Day, 11 July (1921) |
Nationality | noun: Turkmen(s)
adjective: Turkmen |
noun:
Mongolian(s) adjective: Mongolian |
Natural hazards | NA | dust and snow storms, grassland and forest fires, drought and "zud", which is a combination of drought followed by harsh winter conditions |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, sulfur, salt | oil, coal, copper, molybdenum, tungsten, phosphates, tin, nickel, zinc, wolfram, fluorspar, gold, silver, iron, phosphate |
Net migration rate | -0.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 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 |
Citizens' Will Party or CWP (also called Civil Will Party) [Sanjaasurengyn OYUN]; Democratic Party or DP [D. DORLIGAN]; Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party or MPRP [Nambaryn ENKHBAYAR]; Mongolian Democratic New Socialist Party or MDNSP [B. ERDENEBAT]; Mongolian Republican Party or MRP [B. JARGALSAIHAN]
note: the MPRP is the ruling party |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 4,775,544 (July 2003 est.) | 2,654,999 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 34.4% (2001 est.) | 40% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.82% (2003 est.) | 1.47% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Turkmenbasy | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 16, FM 8, shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 7, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2001) |
Radios | - | 155,900 (1999) |
Railways | total: 2,440 km
broad gauge: 2,440 km 1.520-m gauge (2002) |
1,815 km
broad gauge: 1,815 km 1.524-m gauge (2001) |
Religions | Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2% | Tibetan Buddhist Lamaism 96%, Muslim (primarily in the southwest), Shamanism, and Christian 4% (1998) |
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: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2001 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:
very low density: about 3.5 telephones for each thousand persons domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean Region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 363,000 (1997) | 104,100 (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,300 (1998) | 110,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (much programming relayed from Russia and Turkey) (1997) | 4 (plus 18 provincial repeaters and many low powered repeaters) (1999) |
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 | vast semidesert and desert plains, grassy steppe, mountains in west and southwest; Gobi Desert in south-central |
Total fertility rate | 3.5 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.39 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA% |
Waterways | the Amu Darya is an important inland waterway for Turkmenistan, as is the man-made Kara Kum canal | 400 km (1999) |