Compare Turkmenistan (2005) - Dominican Republic (2005)

Compare Turkmenistan (2005) z Dominican Republic (2005)

	Turkmenistan (2005)	Dominican Republic (2005)

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)	31 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 district* (distrito); Azua, Baoruco, Barahona, Dajabon, Distrito Nacional*, Duarte, Elias Pina, El Seibo, Espaillat, Hato Mayor, Independencia, La Altagracia, La Romana, La Vega, Maria Trinidad Sanchez, Monsenor Nouel, Monte Cristi, Monte Plata, Pedernales, Peravia, Puerto Plata, Salcedo, Samana, Sanchez Ramirez, San Cristobal, San Jose de Ocoa, San Juan, San Pedro de Macoris, Santiago, Santiago Rodriguez, Santo Domingo, Valverde
Age structure	0-14 years: 35.7% (male 909,113/female 860,128) 15-64 years: 60.2% (male 1,462,198/female 1,516,836) 65 years and over: 4.1% (male 78,119/female 125,687) (2005 est.)	0-14 years: 32.9% (male 1,505,964/female 1,438,809) 15-64 years: 61.7% (male 2,815,544/female 2,703,012) 65 years and over: 5.4% (male 226,372/female 260,333) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	cotton, grain; livestock	sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, tobacco, rice, beans, potatoes, corn, bananas; cattle, pigs, dairy products, beef, eggs
Airports	53 (2004 est.)	31 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 23 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)	total: 13 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 30 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 26 (2004 est.)	total: 18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 488,100 sq km land: 488,100 sq km water: negl.	total: 48,730 sq km land: 48,380 sq km water: 350 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than California	slightly more than twice the size of New Hampshire
Background	Annexed by Russia between 1865 and 1885, Turkmenistan became a Soviet republic in 1924. 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 were to be expanded. The Turkmenistan Government is actively seeking to develop alternative petroleum transportation routes in order to break Russia's pipeline monopoly.	Explored and claimed by Columbus on his first voyage in 1492, the island of Hispaniola became a springboard for Spanish conquest of the Caribbean and the American mainland. In 1697, Spain recognized French dominion over the western third of the island, which in 1804 became Haiti. The remainder of the island, by then known as Santo Domingo, sought to gain its own independence in 1821, but was conquered and ruled by the Haitians for 22 years; it finally attained independence as the Dominican Republic in 1844. In 1861, the Dominicans voluntarily returned to the Spanish Empire, but two years later they launched a war that restored independence in 1865. A legacy of unsettled, mostly non-representative, rule for much of its subsequent history was brought to an end in 1966 when Joaquin BALAGUER became president. He maintained a tight grip on power for most of the next 30 years when international reaction to flawed elections forced him to curtail his term in 1996. Since then, regular competitive elections have been held in which opposition candidates have won the presidency. The Dominican economy has had one of the fastest growth rates in the hemisphere over the past decade.
Birth rate	27.68 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)	23.28 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $3.05 billion expenditures: $3.05 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)	revenues: $2.625 billion expenditures: $3.382 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.1 billion (2004 est.)
Capital	Ashgabat	Santo Domingo
Climate	subtropical desert	tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation; seasonal variation in rainfall
Coastline	0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km)	1,288 km
Constitution	adopted 18 May 1992	28 November 1966; amended 25 July 2002
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: Dominican Republic conventional short form: The Dominican local long form: Republica Dominicana local short form: La Dominicana
Death rate	8.78 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)	7.35 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$2.4 billion to $5 billion (2001 est.)	$7.745 billion (2004 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Tracey A. JACOBSON embassy: 9 Pushkin (1984) Street, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan 774000 mailing address: 7070 Ashgabat Place, Washington, D.C. 20521-7070 telephone: [9] (9312) 35-00-45 FAX: [9] (9312) 39-26-14	chief of mission: Ambassador Hans H. HERTELL embassy: corner of Calle Cesar Nicolas Penson and Calle Leopoldo Navarro, Santo Domingo mailing address: Unit 5500, APO AA 34041-5500 telephone: [1] (809) 221-2171 FAX: [1] (809) 686-7437
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-designate Flavio Dario Espinal JACOBO chancery: 1715 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6280 FAX: [1] (202) 265-8057 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Mayaguez (Puerto Rico), Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)
Disputes - international	cotton monoculture in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan creates water-sharing difficulties for Amu Darya river states; bilateral talks continue with Azerbaijan on dividing the seabed and contested oilfields in the middle of the Caspian; demarcation of land boundary with Kazakhstan has started but Caspian seabed delimitation remains stalled	increasing numbers of illegal migrants from the Dominican Republic cross the Mona Passage each year to Puerto Rico to find work
Economic aid - recipient	$16 million from the US (2001)	$239.6 million (1995)
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; formerly it was the world's tenth-largest producer. Poor harvests in recent years have led to a nearly 46% decline in cotton exports. 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 1998-2004, 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 perhaps 30% in 2003 and 19% in 2004, 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, the government's irrational use of oil and gas revenues, and its unwillingness to adopt market-oriented reforms. Turkmenistan's economic statistics are state secrets, and GDP and other figures are subject to wide margins of error. In particular, the rate of GDP growth is uncertain.	The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean representative democracy which enjoyed GDP growth of more than 7% in 1998-2000. Growth subsequently plummeted as part of the global economic slowdown. Although the country has long been viewed primarily as an exporter of sugar, coffee, and tobacco, in recent years the service sector has overtaken agriculture as the economy's largest employer, due to growth in tourism and free trade zones. The country suffers from marked income inequality; the poorest half of the population receives less than one-fifth of GNP, while the richest 10% enjoys nearly 40% of national income. Growth turned negative in 2003 with reduced tourism, a major bank fraud, and limited growth in the US economy (the source of about 85% of export revenues), but recovered slightly in 2004. Resumption of a badly needed IMF loan, slowed due to government repurchase of electrical power plants, is basic to the restoration of social and economic stability. Newly elected President FERNANDEZ in mid-2004 promised belt-tightening reform. His administration has passed tax reform and is working to meet preconditions for a $600 IMF standby arrangement to ease the country's fiscal situation.
Electricity - consumption	8.908 billion kWh (2002)	8.912 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	1.136 billion kWh (2004)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2002)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	11.41 billion kWh (2004 est.)	9.583 billion kWh (2002)
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: Lago Enriquillo -46 m highest point: Pico Duarte 3,175 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 shortages; soil eroding into the sea damages coral reefs; 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, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Ethnic groups	Turkmen 85%, Uzbek 5%, Russian 4%, other 6% (2003)	white 16%, black 11%, mixed 73%
Exchange rates	Turkmen manats per US dollar - 10,100 (2004), 10,034 (2003), 10,098 (2002), 5,200 (2001) note: in recent years the unofficial rate has hovered around 21,000 manats to the dollar	Dominican pesos per US dollar - 42.12 (2004), 30.831 (2003), 18.61 (2002), 16.952 (2001), 16.415 (2000)
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: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president note: NIYAZOV's term in office was extended indefinitely on 28 December 1999 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 in 2008 when NIYAZOV turns 70 and is constitutionally ineligible to run); note - President NIYAZOV was unanimously approved as president for life by the People's Council 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 Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna (since 16 August 2004); Vice President Rafael ALBURQUERQUE de Castro (since 16 August 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna (since 16 August 2004); Vice President Rafael ALBURQUERQUE de Castro (since 16 August 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 16 May 2004 (next to be held in May 2008) election results: Leonel FERNANDEZ elected president; percent of vote - Leonel FERNANDEZ (PLD) 57.1%, Rafael Hipolito MEJIA Dominguez (PRD) 33.7%, Eduardo ESTRELLA (PRSC) 8.7%
Exports	NA	NA
Exports - commodities	gas, crude oil, petrochemicals, cotton fiber, textiles	ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, meats, consumer goods
Exports - partners	Ukraine 46.6%, Iran 17.3%, Turkey 4.2%, Italy 4.1% (2004)	US 80%, South Korea 2.1%, Canada 1.9% (2004)
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	a centered white cross that extends to the edges divides the flag into four rectangles - the top ones are blue (hoist side) and red, and the bottom ones are red (hoist side) and blue; a small coat of arms featuring a shield supported by an olive branch (left) and a palm branch (right) is at the center of the cross; above the shield a blue ribbon displays the motto, DIOS, PATRIA, LIBERTAD (God, Fatherland, Liberty), and below the shield, REPUBLICA DOMINICANA appears on a red ribbon
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 28.5% industry: 42.7% services: 28.8% (2004 est.)	agriculture: 10.7% industry: 31.5% services: 57.8% (2003)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $5,700 (2004 est.)	purchasing power parity - $6,300 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	IMF estimate: 7.5% note: official government statistics show 21.4% growth, but these estimates are notoriously unreliable (2004 est.)	1.7% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	40 00 N, 60 00 E	19 00 N, 70 40 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	shares island of Hispaniola with Haiti
Heliports	1 (2004 est.)	-
Highways	total: 24,000 km paved: 19,488 km unpaved: 4,512 km (1999 est.)	total: 12,600 km paved: 6,224 km unpaved: 6,376 km (1999)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 2.6% highest 10%: 31.7% (1998)	lowest 10%: 2.1% highest 10%: 37.9% (1998)
Illicit drugs	transit country for Afghan narcotics bound for Russian and Western European markets; transit point for heroin precursor chemicals bound for Afghanistan	transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe; has become a transshipment point for ecstasy from the Netherlands and Belgium destined for US and Canada; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor the Dominican Republic for illicit financial transactions
Imports	NA	129,900 bbl/day (2003)
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs	foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton and fabrics, chemicals and pharmaceuticals
Imports - partners	US 11.8%, Russia 9.7%, UAE 9.2%, Ukraine 9%, Turkey 8.6%, Germany 8%, France 5%, Georgia 4.6%, Iran 4.5% (2004)	US 48.1%, Venezuela 13.5%, Colombia 4.8%, Mexico 4.8% (2004)
Independence	27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union)	27 February 1844 (from Haiti)
Industrial production growth rate	official government estimate: 22% (2003 est.)	2% (2001 est.)
Industries	natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing	tourism, sugar processing, ferronickel and gold mining, textiles, cement, tobacco
Infant mortality rate	total: 73.08 deaths/1,000 live births male: 76.9 deaths/1,000 live births female: 69.07 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)	total: 32.38 deaths/1,000 live births male: 34.81 deaths/1,000 live births female: 29.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	9% (2004 est.)	55% (2004 est.)
International organization participation	AsDB, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO	ACP, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	17,500 sq km (2003 est.)	2,590 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president)	Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are appointed by a the National Judicial Council comprised of the President, the leaders of both chambers of congress, the President of the Supreme Court, and an opposition or non-governing party member)
Labor force	2.32 million (2003 est.)	2.3 million - 2.6 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 48.2%, industry 13.8%, services 37% (2003 est.)	agriculture 17%, industry 24.3%, services and government 58.7% (1998 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 3,736 km border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km	total: 360 km border countries: Haiti 360 km
Land use	arable land: 3.72% permanent crops: 0.14% other: 96.14% (2001)	arable land: 22.65% permanent crops: 10.33% other: 67.02% (2001)
Languages	Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7%	Spanish
Legal system	based on civil law system	based on French civil codes; undergoing modification in 2004 towards an accusatory system
Legislative branch	under the 1992 constitution, there are two parliamentary bodies, a unicameral People's Council or Halk Maslahaty (supreme legislative body of up to 2,500 delegates, some of whom are elected by popular vote and some of whom are appointed; meets at least yearly) and a unicameral Parliament or Mejlis (50 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: People's Council - last held in April 2003; Mejlis - last held 19 December 2004 (next to be held December 2009) election results: Mejlis - DPT 100%; seats by party - DPT 50; note - all 50 elected officials are members of the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan and are preapproved by President NIYAZOV note: in late 2003, a new law was adopted, reducing the powers of the Mejlis and making the Halk Maslahaty the supreme legislative organ; the Halk Maslahaty can now legally dissolve the Mejlis, and the president is now able to participate in the Mejlis as its supreme leader; the Mejlis can no longer adopt or amend the constitution, or announce referendums or its elections; since the president is both the "Chairman for Life" of the Halk Maslahaty and the supreme leader of the Mejlis, the 2003 law has the effect of making him the sole authority of both the executive and legislative branches of government	bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate or Senado (32 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (150 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 16 May 2002 (next to be held May 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 16 May 2002 (next to be held May 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRD 29, PLD 2, PRSC 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRD 73, PLD 41, PRSC 36
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 61.39 years male: 58.02 years female: 64.93 years (2005 est.)	total population: 71.44 years male: 69.94 years female: 73.03 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98.8% male: 99.3% female: 98.3% (1995 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 84.7% male: 84.6% female: 84.8% (2003 est.)
Location	Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan	Caribbean, eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Haiti
Map references	Asia	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	territorial sea: 6 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine	total: 7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,873 GRT/8,345 DWT by type: cargo 3, combination ore/oil 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 1 (2005)	total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 11,230 GRT/17,011 DWT by type: cargo 3 (2005)
Military branches	Ground Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces (2004)	Army, Navy, Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$90 million (FY99)	$180 million (1998)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	3.4% (FY99)	1.1% (1998)
National holiday	Independence Day, 27 October (1991)	Independence Day, 27 February (1844)
Nationality	noun: Turkmen(s) adjective: Turkmen	noun: Dominican(s) adjective: Dominican
Natural hazards	NA	lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding; periodic droughts
Natural resources	petroleum, natural gas, sulfur, salt	nickel, bauxite, gold, silver
Net migration rate	-0.81 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)	-3.02 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines	gas 6,549 km; oil 1,395 km (2004)	-
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 SHIKHMURADOV 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; the Union of Democratic Forces, a coalition of opposition-in-exile groups, is based in Europe	Dominican Liberation Party or PLD [Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna]; Dominican Revolutionary Party or PRD [Vicente Sanchez BARET]; Social Christian Reformist Party or PRSC [Enrique ATUN]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	Collective of Popular Organizations or COP; Citizen Participation Group (Participacion Ciudadania); Foundation for Institution-Building (FINJUS)
Population	4,952,081 (July 2005 est.)	8,950,034 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	58% (2003 est.)	25%
Population growth rate	1.81% (2005 est.)	1.29% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	Turkmenbasy	Boca Chica, Puerto Plata, Rio Haina, Santo Domingo
Radio broadcast stations	AM 16, FM 8, shortwave 2 (1998)	AM 120, FM 56, shortwave 4 (1998)
Railways	total: 2,440 km broad gauge: 2,440 km 1.520-m gauge (2004)	total: 1,743 km standard gauge: 375 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 142 km 0.762-m gauge note: additional 1,226 km operated by sugar companies in 1.076-m, 0.889-m, and 0.762-m gauges (2004)
Religions	Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2%	Roman Catholic 95%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 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 (2005 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age, universal and compulsory; married persons regardless of age note: members of the armed forces and national police cannot vote
Telephone system	general assessment: poorly developed domestic: NA international: country code - 993; 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: relatively efficient system based on island-wide microwave radio relay network international: country code - 1-809; 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	374,000 (2002)	901,800 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	52,000 (2004)	2,120,400 (2003)
Television broadcast stations	4 (government owned and programmed) (2004)	25 (2003)
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	rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed
Total fertility rate	3.41 children born/woman (2005 est.)	2.86 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	60% (2004 est.)	17% (2004 est.)
Waterways	1,300 km (Amu Darya and Kara Kum canal important inland waterways) (2003)	-

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