Uzbekistan (2002) | Guinea-Bissau (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 12 provinces (viloyatlar, singular - viloyat), 1 autonomous republic* (respublika), and 1 city** (shahar); Andijon Viloyati, Buxoro Viloyati, Farg'ona Viloyati, Jizzax Viloyati, Namangan Viloyati, Navoiy Viloyati, Qashqadaryo Viloyati (Qarshi), Qaraqalpog'iston Respublikasi* (Nukus), Samarqand Viloyati, Sirdaryo Viloyati (Guliston), Surxondaryo Viloyati (Termiz), Toshkent Shahri**, Toshkent Viloyati, Xorazm Viloyati (Urganch)
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses) |
9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali; note - Bolama may have been renamed Bolama/Bijagos |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 35.5% (male 4,617,110; female 4,457,065)
15-64 years: 59.8% (male 7,567,510; female 7,726,753) 65 years and over: 4.7% (male 482,137; female 712,866) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 41.5% (male 293,280/female 294,483)
15-64 years: 55.5% (male 376,719/female 409,402) 65 years and over: 3% (male 17,865/female 24,278) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, vegetables, fruits, grain; livestock | rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish |
Airports | 267 (2001) | 28 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 10
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 257
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 222 (2002) |
total: 25
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 447,400 sq km
land: 425,400 sq km water: 22,000 sq km |
total: 36,120 sq km
land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than California | slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut |
Background | Russia conquered Uzbekistan in the late 19th century. Stiff resistance to the Red Army after World War I was eventually suppressed and a socialist republic set up in 1924. During the Soviet era, intensive production of "white gold" (cotton) and grain led to overuse of agrochemicals and the depletion of water supplies, which have left the land poisoned and the Aral Sea and certain rivers half dry. Independent since 1991, the country seeks to gradually lessen its dependence on agriculture while developing its mineral and petroleum reserves. Current concerns include insurgency by Islamic militants based in Tajikistan and Afghanistan, a nonconvertible currency, and the curtailment of human rights and democratization. | Since independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has experienced considerable upheaval. The founding government consisted of a single party system and command economy. In 1980, a military coup established Joao VIEIRA as president and a path to a market economy and multiparty system was implemented. A number of coup attempts through the 1980s and early 1990s failed to unseat him and in 1994 he was elected president in the country's first free elections. A military coup attempt and civil war in 1998 eventually led to VIEIRA's ouster in 1999. In February 2000, an interim government turned over power when opposition leader Kumba YALA took office following two rounds of transparent presidential elections. YALA was ousted in a bloodless coup in September 2003, and Henrique ROSA was sworn in as President. Guinea-Bissau's transition back to democracy will be complicated by its crippled economy, devastated in the civil war. |
Birth rate | 26.09 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 37.65 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $4 billion
expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA |
Capital | Tashkent (Toshkent) | Bissau |
Climate | mostly midlatitude desert, long, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid grassland in east | tropical; generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds |
Coastline | 0 km (doubly landlocked); note - Uzbekistan includes the southern portion of the Aral Sea with a 420 km shoreline | 350 km |
Constitution | new constitution adopted 8 December 1992 | 16 May 1984; amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and 1996 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Uzbekistan
conventional short form: Uzbekistan local long form: Ozbekiston Respublikasi local short form: Ozbekiston former: Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form: Republic of Guinea-Bissau
conventional short form: Guinea-Bissau local long form: Republica da Guine-Bissau local short form: Guine-Bissau former: Portuguese Guinea |
Currency | Uzbekistani sum (UZS) | - |
Death rate | 7.98 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 16.53 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $5.1 billion (2001 est.) | $941.5 million (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador John Edward HERBST
embassy: 82 Chilanzarskaya, Tashkent 700115 mailing address: use embassy street address; US Embassy Tashkent, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-7110 telephone: [998] (71) 120-5450 FAX: [998] (71) 120-6335 |
the US Embassy suspended operations on 14 June 1998 in the midst of violent conflict between forces loyal to then President VIEIRA and military-led junta; US embassy Dakar is responsible for covering Guinea-Bissau: telephone - [221] 823-4296; FAX - [221] 822-5903 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Shavkat HAMRAKULOV
chancery: 1746 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 887-5300 FAX: [1] (202) 293-6804 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Henrique Adriano DA SILVA
chancery: 1511 K Street NW, Suite 519, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 347-3950 FAX: [1] (202) 347-3954 |
Disputes - international | dispute over access to Sokh and other Uzbek enclaves in Kyrgyzstan mars progress on international boundary delimitation; Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan wrestle with sharing limited water resources; Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan contend with the regional environmental degradation caused by the shrinking Aral Sea; the border with Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan is mined in certain sections, continuing to cause civilian casualties | attempts to stem refugees and cross-border raids, arms smuggling, and political instability from a separatist movement in Senegal's Casamance region |
Economic aid - recipient | approximately $150 million from the US (2001) | $115.4 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Uzbekistan is a dry, landlocked country of which 11% consists of intensely cultivated, irrigated river valleys. More than 60% of its population lives in densely populated rural communities. Uzbekistan is now the world's second largest cotton exporter, a large producer of gold and oil, and a regionally significant producer of chemicals and machinery. Following independence in December 1991, the government sought to prop up its Soviet-style command economy with subsidies and tight controls on production and prices. The state continues to be a dominating influence in the economy and has so far failed to bring about much-needed structural changes. The IMF suspended Uzbekistan's $185 million standby arrangement in late 1996 because of governmental steps that made impossible fulfillment of Fund conditions. Uzbekistan has responded to the negative external conditions generated by the Asian and Russian financial crises by emphasizing import substitute industrialization and by tightening export and currency controls within its already largely closed economy. Economic policies that have repelled foreign investment are a major factor in the economy's stagnation. A growing debt burden, persistent inflation, and a poor business climate led to disappointing growth in 2001. However, in December 2001 the government voiced a renewed interest in economic reform, seeking advice from the IMF and other financial institutions. | One of the 10 poorest countries in the world, Guinea-Bissau depends mainly on farming and fishing. Cashew crops have increased remarkably in recent years, and the country now ranks sixth in cashew production. Guinea-Bissau exports fish and seafood along with small amounts of peanuts, palm kernels, and timber. Rice is the major crop and staple food. However, intermittent fighting between Senegalese-backed government troops and a military junta destroyed much of the country's infrastructure and caused widespread damage to the economy in 1998; the civil war led to a 28% drop in GDP that year, with partial recovery in 1999-2002. Before the war, trade reform and price liberalization were the most successful part of the country's structural adjustment program under IMF sponsorship. The tightening of monetary policy and the development of the private sector had also begun to reinvigorate the economy. Because of high costs, the development of petroleum, phosphate, and other mineral resources is not a near-term prospect. However, unexploited offshore oil reserves could provide much-needed revenue in the long run. The inequality of income distribution is one of the most extreme in the world. The government and international donors continue to work out plans to forward economic development from a lamentably low base. In December 2003, the World Bank, IMF, and UNDP were forced to step in to provide emergency budgetary support in the amount of $107 million for 2004, representing over 80% of the total national budget. Government drift and indecision, however, have resulted in continued low growth in 2004. |
Electricity - consumption | 41.89 billion kWh (2000) | 51.15 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 4.1 billion kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 5 billion kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 44.075 billion kWh (2000) | 55 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 87%
hydro: 13% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sariqarnish Kuli -12 m
highest point: Adelunga Toghi 4,301 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m |
Environment - current issues | shrinkage of the Aral Sea is resulting in growing concentrations of chemical pesticides and natural salts; these substances are then blown from the increasingly exposed lake bed and contribute to desertification; water pollution from industrial wastes and the heavy use of fertilizers and pesticides is the cause of many human health disorders; increasing soil salination; soil contamination from buried nuclear processing and agricultural chemicals, including DDT | deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Uzbek 80%, Russian 5.5%, Tajik 5%, Kazakh 3%, Karakalpak 2.5%, Tatar 1.5%, other 2.5% (1996 est.) | African 99% (Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% |
Exchange rates | Uzbekistani sums per US dollar - 687.0 (January 2002), 325.0 (January 2001), 141.4 (January 2000), 111.9 (February 1999), 110.95 (December 1998), 75.8 (September 1997) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000)
note: since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Islom KARIMOV (since 24 March 1990, when he was elected president by the then Supreme Soviet)
head of government: Prime Minister Otkir SULTONOV (since 21 December 1995) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president with approval of the Supreme Assembly elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (previously was a five-year term, extended by constitutional ammendment in 2002); election last held 9 January 2000 (next to be held NA 2007); prime minister and deputy ministers appointed by the president election results: Islom KARIMOV reelected president; percent of vote - Islom KARIMOV 91.9%, Abdulkhafiz JALALOV 4.2% |
chief of state: President Henrique ROSA (interim; since 28 September 2003); note - a September 2003 coup overthrew the elected government of Kumba YALA; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 to 28 September 2003
head of government: Prime Minister Carlos GOMES Junior (since 9 May 2004) cabinet: NA elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 28 November 1999 and 16 January 2000 (next to be held May 2005); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the legislature election results: Kumba YALA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Kumba YALA (PRS) 72%, Malan Bacai SANHA (PAIGC) 28% note: a bloodless coup led to the dissolution of the elected government of Kumba YALA in September 2003; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 September 2003 until stepping aside on 28 September 2003 with the establishment of a caretaker government |
Exports | $2.8 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | NA |
Exports - commodities | cotton 41.5%, gold 9.6%, energy products 9.6%, mineral fertilizers, ferrous metals, textiles, food products, automobiles (1998 est.) | cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber |
Exports - partners | Russia 16.7%, Switzerland 8.3%, UK 7.2%, Ukraine 4.7%, South Korea 3.3%, Kazakhstan 3.1% (2000) | India 52.1%, US 22.2%, Nigeria 13.2% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and green separated by red fimbriations with a white crescent moon and 12 white stars in the upper hoist-side quadrant | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and green with a vertical red band on the hoist side; there is a black five-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $62 billion (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 33%
industry: 24% services: 43% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 62%
industry: 12% services: 26% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $700 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2001 est.) | 2.6% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 41 00 N, 64 00 E | 12 00 N, 15 00 W |
Geography - note | along with Liechtenstein, one of the only two doubly landlocked countries in the world | this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland |
Highways | total: 81,600 km
paved: 71,237 km (includes some all-weather gravel-surfaced roads) unpaved: 10,363 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1990) |
total: 4,400 km
paved: 453 km unpaved: 3,947 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 25% (1993) (1993) |
lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 42.4% (1991) |
Illicit drugs | transit country for Afghan narcotics bound for Russian and, to a lesser extent, Western European markets; limited illicit cultivation of cannabis and small amounts of opium poppy for domestic consumption; poppy cultivation almost wiped out by government crop eradication program; transit point for heroin precursor chemicals bound for Afghanistan | - |
Imports | $2.5 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 49.8%, foodstuffs 16.4%, chemicals, metals (1998 est.) | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Russia 15.8%, South Korea 9.8%, US 8.7%, Germany 8.6%, Kazakhstan 7.3%, Ukraine 6.1% (2002) | Senegal 44.6%, Portugal 13.8%, China 4.2% (2004) |
Independence | 1 September 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.5% (2000 est.) | 2.6% (1997 est.) |
Industries | textiles, food processing, machine building, metallurgy, natural gas, chemicals | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks |
Infant mortality rate | 71.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 107.17 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 117.78 deaths/1,000 live births female: 96.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 23% (2001 est.) | 4% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | AsDB, CCC, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 42 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 42,810 sq km (1998 est.) | 170 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are nominated by the president and confirmed by the Supreme Assembly) | Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal da Justica (consists of nine justices appointed by the president and serve at his pleasure; final court of appeals in criminal and civil cases); Regional Courts (one in each of nine regions; first court of appeals for Sectoral Court decisions; hear all felony cases and civil cases valued at over $1,000); 24 Sectoral Courts (judges are not necessarily trained lawyers; they hear civil cases under $1,000 and misdemeanor criminal cases) |
Labor force | 11.9 million (1998 est.) | 480,000 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 44%, industry 20%, services 36% (1995) (1995) | agriculture 82% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 6,221 km
border countries: Afghanistan 137 km, Kazakhstan 2,203 km, Kyrgyzstan 1,099 km, Tajikistan 1,161 km, Turkmenistan 1,621 km |
total: 724 km
border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km |
Land use | arable land: 10.8%
permanent crops: 0.91% other: 88.29% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 10.67%
permanent crops: 8.82% other: 80.51% (2001) |
Languages | Uzbek 74.3%, Russian 14.2%, Tajik 4.4%, other 7.1% | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages |
Legal system | evolution of Soviet civil law; still lacks independent judicial system | NA |
Legislative branch | unicameral Supreme Assembly or Oliy Majlis (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms); note - 2002 ammendment to the constitution creates a second chamber to be established via elections in 2004
elections: last held 5 December and 19 December 1999 (next to be held NA December 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NDP 48, Self-Sacrificers Party 34, Fatherland Progress Party 20, Adolat Social Democratic Party 11, MTP 10, citizens' groups 16, local government 110, vacant 1 note: not all seats in the last Supreme Assembly election were contested; all parties in the Supreme Assembly support President KARIMOV |
unicameral National People's Assembly or Assembleia Nacional Popular (100 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve a maximum of four years)
elections: last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - PAIGC 31.5%, PRS 24.8%, PUSD 16.1%, UE 4.1%, APU 1.3%, 13 other parties 22.2%; seats by party - PAIGC 45, PRS 35, PUSD 17, UE 2, APU 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 63.9 years
male: 60.38 years female: 67.6 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 46.61 years
male: 44.77 years female: 48.52 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (yearend 1996) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 42.4% male: 58.1% female: 27.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central Asia, north of Afghanistan | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal |
Map references | Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (doubly landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Military branches | Army, Air and Air Defense Forces, National Guard, Security Forces (internal security and border troops) | People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $200 million (FY97) | $8.9 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2% (FY97) | 3.1% (2004) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 6,747,221 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 5,478,766 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 274,602 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 September (1991) | Independence Day, 24 September (1973) |
Nationality | noun: Uzbek(s)
adjective: Uzbek |
noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
Natural hazards | NA | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires |
Natural resources | natural gas, petroleum, coal, gold, uranium, silver, copper, lead and zinc, tungsten, molybdenum | fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, clay, granite, limestone, unexploited deposits of petroleum |
Net migration rate | -1.94 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -1.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 250 km; petroleum products 40 km; natural gas 810 km (1992) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Adolat (Justice) Social Democratic Party [Anwar JURABAYEV, first secretary]; Democratic National Rebirth Party (Milly Tiklanish) or MTP [Aziz KAYUMOV, chairman]; People's Democratic Party or NDP (formerly Communist Party) [Abdulkhafiz JALOLOV, first secretary]; Self-Sacrificers Party or Fidokorlar National Democratic Party [Ahtam TURSUNOV, first secretary]; note - Fatherland Progress Party merged with Self-Sacrificers Party | African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Carlos GOMES Junior]; Front for the Liberation and Independence of Guinea or FLING [Francois MENDY]; Guinea-Bissau Resistance-Ba Fata Movement or RGB-MB [Helder Vaz LOPES]; Guinean Civic Forum or FCG [Antonieta Rosa GOMES]; International League for Ecological Protection or LIPE [Alhaje Bubacar DJALO, president]; National Union for Democracy and Progress or UNDP [Abubacer BALDE, secretary general]; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Victor MANDINGA]; Social Renovation Party or PRS [Kumba YALA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Platform or UP [coalition formed by PCD, FDS, FLING, and RGB-MB]; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Francisco Jose FADUL] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Birlik (Unity) Movement [Abdurakhim POLAT, chairman]; Erk (Freedom) Democratic Party [Muhammad SOLIH, chairman] was banned 9 December 1992; Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan [Abdumannob POLAT, chairman]; Independent Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan [Mikhail ARDZINOV, chairman]; Ezgulik [Vasilia Inoyatova] | NA |
Population | 25,563,441 (July 2002 est.) | 1,416,027 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.62% (2002 est.) | 1.96% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Termiz (Amu Darya) | Bissau, Buba, Cacheu, Farim |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 20, FM 7, shortwave 10 (1998) | AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2002) |
Radios | 10.8 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total: 3,656 km
broad gauge: 3,656 km 1.520-m gauge (618 km electrified) (2000) |
- |
Religions | Muslim 88% (mostly Sunnis), Eastern Orthodox 9%, other 3% | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: antiquated and inadequate; in serious need of modernization
domestic: the domestic telephone system is being expanded and technologically improved, particularly in Tashkent and Samarqand, under contracts with prominent companies in industrialized countries; moreover, by 1998, six cellular networks had been placed in operation - four of the GSM type (Global System for Mobile Communication), one D-AMPS type (Digital Advanced Mobile Phone System), and one AMPS type (Advanced Mobile Phone System) international: linked by landline or microwave radio relay with CIS member states and to other countries by leased connection via the Moscow international gateway switch; after the completion of the Uzbek link to the Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic cable, Uzbekistan will be independent of Russian facilities for international communications; Inmarsat also provides an international connection, albeit an expensive one; satellite earth stations - NA (1998) |
general assessment: small system
domestic: combination of microwave radio relay, open-wire lines, radiotelephone, and cellular communications international: country code - 245 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.98 million (1999) | 10,600 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 130,000 (2003) | 1,300 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (plus two repeaters that relay Russian programs), 1 cable rebroadcaster in Tashkent; approximately 20 stations in regional capitals (2003) | NA (1997) |
Terrain | mostly flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes; broad, flat intensely irrigated river valleys along course of Amu Darya, Syr Darya (Sirdaryo), and Zarafshon; Fergana Valley in east surrounded by mountainous Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan; shrinking Aral Sea in west | mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east |
Total fertility rate | 3.03 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 4.93 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10% plus another 20% underemployed (1999 est.) | NA (1998) |
Waterways | 1,100 km (1990) | 4 largest rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2004) |