Uzbekistan (2005) | Reunion (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) |
none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 33.5% (male 4,575,443/female 4,408,146)
15-64 years: 61.7% (male 8,201,993/female 8,371,933) 65 years and over: 4.8% (male 528,334/female 765,346) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 30.4% (male 120,698/female 115,108)
15-64 years: 63.6% (male 243,668/female 250,143) 65 years and over: 6.1% (male 19,234/female 28,097) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, vegetables, fruits, grain; livestock | sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn |
Airports | 226 (2004 est.) | 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 33
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 14 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 4 (2004 est.) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 193
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 187 (2004 est.) |
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Area | total: 447,400 sq km
land: 425,400 sq km water: 22,000 sq km |
total: 2,517 sq km
land: 2,507 sq km water: 10 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than California | slightly smaller than Rhode Island |
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 terrorism by Islamic militants, economic stagnation, and the curtailment of human rights and democratization. | The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration, supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians, gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route. |
Birth rate | 26.22 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 19.26 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.457 billion
expenditures: $2.482 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $1.26 billion
expenditures: $2.62 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (1998) |
Capital | Tashkent (Toshkent) | Saint-Denis |
Climate | mostly midlatitude desert, long, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid grassland in east | tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April |
Coastline | 0 km (doubly landlocked); note - Uzbekistan includes the southern portion of the Aral Sea with a 420 km shoreline | 207 km |
Constitution | new constitution adopted 8 December 1992 | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) |
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: Department of Reunion
conventional short form: Reunion local long form: none local short form: Ile de la Reunion former: Bourbon Island |
Death rate | 7.95 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 5.48 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.351 billion (2004 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jon PURNELL
embassy: 82 Chilanzarskaya, Tashkent 700115 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [998] (71) 120-5450 FAX: [998] (71) 120-6335 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Abdulaziz KAMILOV
chancery: 1746 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 293-6803 FAX: [1] (202) 293-6804 consulate(s) general: New York |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | cotton monoculture in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan creates water-sharing difficulties for Amu Darya river states; delimitation with Kazakhstan complete with demarcation underway; delimitation is underway with Kyrgyzstan but serious disputes around enclaves and elsewhere continue to mar progress for some 130 km of border; talks continue with Tajikistan to delimit border and remove minefields | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $87.4 million from the US (2003) | NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France (2001 est.) |
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. Uzbekistan 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. The government, while aware of the need to improve the investment climate, sponsors measures that often increase, not decrease, the government's control over business decisions. A sharp increase in the inequality of income distribution has hurt the lower ranks of society since independence. In 2003, the government accepted the obligations of Article VIII under the International Monetary Fund (IMF), providing for full currency convertibility. However, strict currency controls and tightening of borders have lessened the effects of convertibility and have also led to some shortages that have further stifled economic activity. | The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but services now dominate. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to one-third of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrates the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France. |
Electricity - consumption | 46.66 billion kWh (2002) | 1.084 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 4.5 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 6.8 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 47.7 billion kWh (2002) | 1.166 billion kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sariqarnish Kuli -12 m
highest point: Adelunga Toghi 4,301 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 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 | NA |
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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | Uzbek 80%, Russian 5.5%, Tajik 5%, Kazakh 3%, Karakalpak 2.5%, Tatar 1.5%, other 2.5% (1996 est.) | French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian |
Exchange rates | Uzbekistani sums per US dollar - 1,020 (2004), 971.265 (2003), 771.03 (2001), 423.832 (2001), 236.61 (2000) | euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000) |
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 Shavkat MIRZIYAYEV (since 11 December 2003) 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 amendment in 2002); election last held 9 January 2000 (next to be held December 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 Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Laurent CAYREL (since 16 July 2005)
head of government: President of the General Council Jean-Luc POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
Exports | NA | NA |
Exports - commodities | cotton 41.5%, gold 9.6%, energy products 9.6%, mineral fertilizers, ferrous metals, textiles, food products, automobiles (1998 est.) | sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%, (1993) |
Exports - partners | Russia 22%, China 14.7%, Turkey 6.4%, Tajikistan 6.1%, Kazakhstan 4.2%, Bangladesh 4% (2004) | France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2000) |
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 | the flag of France is used |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 38%
industry: 26.3% services: 35.7% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 8%
industry: 19% services: 73% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,800 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6,000 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.4% (2004 est.) | 2.5% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 41 00 N, 64 00 E | 21 06 S, 55 36 E |
Geography - note | along with Liechtenstein, one of the only two doubly landlocked countries in the world | this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean |
Highways | total: 81,600 km
paved: 71,237 km unpaved: 10,363 km (1999 est.) |
total: 1,214 km (including 88 km of four-lane roads) (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.6%
highest 10%: 22% (2000) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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 | NA | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 49.8%, foodstuffs 16.4%, chemicals, metals (1998 est.) | manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Russia 26.8%, South Korea 12.6%, US 8%, Germany 7.7%, Kazakhstan 6.3%, China 5.8%, Turkey 5.1%, Ukraine 4.5% (2004) | France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2000) |
Independence | 1 September 1991 (from Soviet Union) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6.2% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Industries | textiles, food processing, machine building, metallurgy, gold petroleum, natural gas, chemicals | sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction |
Infant mortality rate | total: 71.1 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 74.78 deaths/1,000 live births female: 67.22 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 7.78 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.52 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2004 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | AsDB, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, FAO, GUUAM, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, SCO, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) | InOC, UPU, WFTU |
Irrigated land | 42,810 sq km (1998 est.) | 120 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are nominated by the president and confirmed by the Supreme Assembly) | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 14.64 million (2004 est.) | 309,900 (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 44%, industry 20%, services 36% (1995) | agriculture 13%, industry 12%, services 75% (2000) |
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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 10.83%
permanent crops: 0.83% other: 88.34% (2001) |
arable land: 13.6%
permanent crops: 1.2% other: 85.2% (2001) |
Languages | Uzbek 74.3%, Russian 14.2%, Tajik 4.4%, other 7.1% | French (official), Creole widely used |
Legal system | evolution of Soviet civil law; still lacks independent judicial system | French law |
Legislative branch | bicameral Supreme Assembly or Oliy Majlis consists of an Upper House or Senate (100 seats; 84 members are elected by regional governing councils to serve five-year terms and 16 are appointed by the president) and a Lower House or Legislative Chamber (120 seats; elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 26 December 2004 and 9 January 2005 (next to be held December 2009) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Legislative Chamber - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - LDPU 41, NDP 32, Fidokorlar 17, MTP 11, Adolat 9, unaffiliated 10 note: all parties in the Supreme Assembly support President KARIMOV |
unicameral General Council (49 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA); Regional Council - last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2010) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council (second round) - percent of vote by party - PCR 44.9%, UMP 32.8%, PS-Greens 22.3%; seats by party - PCR 27, UMP 11, PS-Greens 7 note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held NA 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, UMP 1, PCR 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 64.19 years
male: 60.82 years female: 67.73 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 73.95 years
male: 70.55 years female: 77.52 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.3% male: 99.6% female: 99% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 88.9% male: 87% female: 90.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central Asia, north of Afghanistan | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar |
Map references | Asia | World |
Maritime claims | none (doubly landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | - | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 28,264 GRT/44,885 DWT
by type: chemical tanker 1 foreign-owned: 1 (France 1) registered in other countries: 1 (2005) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Army, Air and Air Defense Forces, National Guard | no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $200 million (FY97) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2% (FY97) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 September (1991) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Uzbekistani
adjective: Uzbekistani |
noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)
adjective: Reunionese |
Natural hazards | NA | periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano |
Natural resources | natural gas, petroleum, coal, gold, uranium, silver, copper, lead and zinc, tungsten, molybdenum | fish, arable land, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -1.61 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 9,149 km; oil 869 km; refined products 33 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Adolat (Justice) Social Democratic Party [Dilorom TOSHMUHAMMADOVA, chairman]; Democratic National Rebirth Party (Milly Tiklanish) or MTP [Xurshid DOSTMUHAMMADOV, chief]; Liberal Democratic Party of Uzbekistan or LDPU [Adham SHODMONOV, chairman]; People's Democratic Party or NDP (formerly Communist Party) [Asliddin RUSTAMOV, first secretary]; Self-Sacrificers Party or Fidokorlar National Democratic Party [Ahtam TURSUNOV, chief]; note - Fatherland Progress Party merged with Self-Sacrificers Party | Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Paul VERGES]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jean-Claude FRUTEAU]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Agrarian and Entrepreneurs' Party [Marat ZAHIDOV]; Birlik (Unity) Movement [Abdurakhim POLAT, chairman]; Erk (Freedom) Democratic Party [Muhammad SOLIH, chairman] was banned 9 December 1992; Ezgulik Human Rights Society [Vasilia INOYATOVA]; Free Farmers' Party or Ozod Dehqonlar [Nigara KHIDOYATOVA]; Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan [Tolib YAKUBOV, chairman]; Independent Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan [Mikhail ARDZINOV, chairman]; Mazlum [leader NA] | NA |
Population | 26,851,195 (July 2005 est.) | 776,948 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 28% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.67% (2005 est.) | 1.38% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Termiz (Amu Darya) | Le Port |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 20, FM 7, shortwave 10 (1998) | AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001) |
Railways | total: 3,950 km
broad gauge: 3,950 km 1.520-m gauge (620 km electrified) (2004) |
- |
Religions | Muslim 88% (mostly Sunnis), Eastern Orthodox 9%, other 3% | Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995) |
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: 0.69 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: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 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 (Toshkent) 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: country code - 998; 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: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis
domestic: modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network international: country code - 262; radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1,717,100 (2003) | 300,000 est (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 320,800 (2003) | 489,800 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (plus two repeaters that relay Russian programs), 1 cable rebroadcaster in Tashkent; approximately 20 stations in regional capitals (2003) | 35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001) |
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 rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast |
Total fertility rate | 2.94 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.47 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 0.6% officially, plus another 20% underemployed (2004 est.) | 36% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | 1,100 km (2004) | - |