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Compare West Bank (2005) - Turkmenistan (2006)

Compare West Bank (2005) z Turkmenistan (2006)

 West Bank (2005)Turkmenistan (2006)
 West BankTurkmenistan
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)
Age structure 0-14 years: 43.4% (male 530,197/female 504,794)


15-64 years: 53.2% (male 649,610/female 619,335)


65 years and over: 3.4% (male 34,803/female 46,876) (2005 est.)
0-14 years: 35.2% (male 913,988/female 863,503)


15-64 years: 60.7% (male 1,501,486/female 1,557,155)


65 years and over: 4.1% (male 79,227/female 127,561) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products cotton, grain; livestock
Airports 3 (2004 est.) 29 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways total: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
total: 22


over 3,047 m: 1


2,438 to 3,047 m: 11


1,524 to 2,437 m: 8


914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways - total: 7


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 4 (2006)
Area total: 5,860 sq km


land: 5,640 sq km


water: 220 sq km


note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967
total: 488,100 sq km


land: 488,100 sq km


water: NEGL
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Delaware slightly larger than California
Background The Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (the DOP), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993, provided for a transitional period not exceeding five years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Under the DOP, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority, which includes the Palestinian Legislative Council elected in January 1996, as part of the interim self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement, the Israel-PLO 15 January 1997 Protocol Concerning Redeployment in Hebron, the Israel-PLO 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum, and the 4 September 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The DOP provides that Israel will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external and internal security and for public order of settlements and Israeli citizens. Direct negotiations to determine the permanent status of Gaza and West Bank that began in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus, were derailed by a second intifadah that broke out in September 2000. The resulting widespread violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel's military response, and instability within the Palestinian Authority continue to undermine progress toward a permanent agreement. Following the death of longtime Palestinian leader Yasir ARAFAT in November 2004, the election of his successor Mahmud ABBAS in January 2005 could bring a turning point in the conflict. 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 Saparmurat 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.
Birth rate 32.37 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) 27.61 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget revenues: $676.6 million


expenditures: $1.155 billion, including capital expenditures of NA; note - these budget data include Gaza Strip (2003)
revenues: $1.401 billion


expenditures: $1.542 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)
Capital - name: Ashgabat (Ashkhabad)


geographic coordinates: 37 57 N, 58 23 E


time difference: UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters subtropical desert
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km)
Constitution - adopted 18 May 1992
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: West Bank
conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Turkmenistan


local long form: none


local short form: Turkmenistan


former: Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic
Death rate 3.99 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) 8.6 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external $108 million (includes Gaza Strip) (1997 est.) $2.4 billion to $5 billion (2001 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US - chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Jennifer L. BRUSH


embassy: No. 9 1984 Street (formerly Pushkin Street), Ashgabat, Turkmenistan 774000


mailing address: 7070 Ashgabat Place, Washington, DC 20521-7070


telephone: [9] (9312) 35-00-45


FAX: [9] (9312) 39-26-14
Diplomatic representation in the US - chief of mission: Ambassador Meret Bairamovich ORAZOV


chancery: 2207 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 588-1500


FAX: [1] (202) 588-0697
Disputes - international West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation; Israel continues construction of a "seam line" separation barrier along parts of the Green Line and within the West Bank; Israel announced its intention to pull out settlers and withdraw from four settlements in the northern West Bank in 2005; since 1948, about 350 peacekeepers from the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO), headquartered in Jerusalem, monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating, and assist other UN personnel in the region 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
Economic aid - recipient $2 billion (includes Gaza Strip) (2004 est.) $16 million from the US (2001)
Economy - overview The West Bank - the larger of the two areas under the Palestine Authority - has experienced a general decline in economic growth and a degradation in economic conditions made worse since the second intifadah began in September 2000. The downturn has been largely the result of the Israeli closure policies - the imposition of border closures in response to security incidents in Israel - which disrupted labor and commodity market relationships. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, Israeli military measures in Palestine Authority areas resulted in the destruction of much capital plant, the disruption of administrative structure, and widespread business closures. Including the Gaza Strip, the UN estimates that more than 100,000 Palestinians out of the 125,000 who used to work in Israeli settlements, or in joint industrial zones, have lost their jobs. International aid of $2 billion to the West Bank and Gaza strip in 2004 prevented the complete collapse of the economy and allowed some reforms in the government's financial operations. Meanwhile, unemployment has continued at more than half the labor force. ARAFAT's death in 2004 leaves open more political options that could affect the economy. Turkmenistan is a 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 an almost 50% 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 1998-2005, 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 20% to 30% per year in 2003-2005, largely because of higher international oil and gas prices. In 2005, Ashgabat sought to raise natural gas export prices to its main customers, Russia and Ukraine, from $44 per thousand cubic meters (tcm) to $66 per tcm. 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.
Electricity - consumption NA kWh 8.847 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports - 1.136 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports NA kWh 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants 11.41 billion kWh (2004 est.)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m


highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m
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)


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
Environment - current issues adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment 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
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
Ethnic groups Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% Turkmen 85%, Uzbek 5%, Russian 4%, other 6% (2003)
Exchange rates new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003), 4.7378 (2002), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000) in recent years the unofficial rate has hovered around 24,000 to 25,000 Turkmen manats to the dollar; the official rate has consistently been 5,200 manat to the dollar
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)


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); in November 2005, the People's Council voted down NIYAZOV's suggestion to hold presidential elections in 2009


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 21 June 1992; 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%
Exports $205 million f.o.b., includes Gaza Strip (2002) NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone gas, crude oil, petrochemicals, cotton fiber, textiles
Exports - partners Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000) Ukraine 43.5%, Iran 15%, Hungary 5.4% (2005)
Fiscal year calendar year (since 1 January 1992) calendar year
Flag description - green field with a vertical red stripe near the hoist side, containing five tribal guls (designs used in producing carpets) stacked above two crossed olive branches similar to the olive branches on the UN flag; a white crescent moon representing Islam with five white stars representing the regions or velayats of Turkmenistan appear in the upper corner of the field just to the fly side of the red stripe
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 9%


industry: 28%


services: 63%


note: includes Gaza Strip (2002 est.)
agriculture: 20.9%


industry: 38%


services: 41.1% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $800 (2003 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 6% (2003 est.) IMF estimate: 6%


note: official government statistics show 21.4% growth, but these estimates are widely regarded as unreliable (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates 32 00 N, 35 15 E 40 00 N, 60 00 E
Geography - note landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 244 West Bank settlements and 29 East Jerusalem settlements in addition to at least 20 occupied outposts (August 2003 est.) 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
Heliports - 1 (2006)
Highways total: 4,500 km


paved: 2,700 km


unpaved: 1,800 km


note: Israelis have developed many highways to service Jewish settlements (1997 est.)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA


highest 10%: NA
lowest 10%: 2.6%


highest 10%: 31.7% (1998)
Illicit drugs - transit country for Afghan narcotics bound for Russian and Western European markets; transit point for heroin precursor chemicals bound for Afghanistan
Imports $1.5 billion c.i.f., includes Gaza Strip (2002) NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities food, consumer goods, construction materials machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs
Imports - partners Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000) UAE 12.4%, Azerbaijan 10.9%, US 9.4%, Russia 8.9%, Ukraine 7.4%, Turkey 7.2%, Iran 6.1%, Germany 5.3%, Kazakhstan 4.2% (2005)
Independence - 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union)
Industrial production growth rate NA 22% (2003 est.)
Industries generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing
Infant mortality rate total: 19.62 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 21.66 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 17.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
total: 72.56 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 76.9 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 68 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2.2% (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.) 10.5% (2005 est.)
International organization participation - AsDB, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO
Irrigated land NA sq km 18,000 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch - Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president)
Labor force 364,000 (2004) 2.32 million (2003 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 15%, industry 25%, services 60% (2004 est.) agriculture: 48.2%


industry: 13.8%


services: 37% (2003 est.)
Land boundaries total: 404 km


border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km
total: 3,736 km


border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km
Land use arable land: 16.9%


permanent crops: 18.97%


other: 64.13% (2001)
arable land: 4.51%


permanent crops: 0.14%


other: 95.35% (2005)
Languages Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7%
Legal system - based on civil law 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); membership is scheduled to be increased to 65 seats


elections: People's Council - last held in April 2003 (next to be held December 2008); Mejlis - last held 19 December 2004 (next to be held December 2008)


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
Life expectancy at birth total population: 73.08 years


male: 71.33 years


female: 74.95 years (2005 est.)
total population: 61.83 years


male: 58.43 years


female: 65.41 years (2006 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 91.9%


male: 96.3%


female: 87.4% (2003 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 98.8%


male: 99.3%


female: 98.3% (1999 est.)
Location Middle East, west of Jordan Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan
Map references Middle East Asia
Maritime claims none (landlocked) none (landlocked)
Merchant marine - total: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 22,870 GRT/25,801 DWT


by type: cargo 4, combination ore/oil 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 1 (2006)
Military branches - Ground Forces, Artillery and Rocket Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure NA $90 million (FY99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA 3.4% (FY99)
National holiday - Independence Day, 27 October (1991)
Nationality noun: NA


adjective: NA
noun: Turkmen(s)


adjective: Turkmen
Natural hazards droughts NA
Natural resources arable land petroleum, natural gas, sulfur, salt
Net migration rate 2.88 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) -0.75 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines - gas 6,441 km; oil 1,361 km (2006)
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 National Democratic Movement of Turkmenistan (NDMT) and the United Democratic Party of Turkmenistan (UDPT); NDMT 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; UDPT is led by former Foreign Minister Abdy KULIEV and is based out of Moscow
Political pressure groups and leaders - NA
Population 2,385,615


note: in addition, there are about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (July 2004 est.)
5,042,920 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line 59% (2004 est.) 58% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate 3.13% (2005 est.) 1.83% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0


note: the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation broadcasts from an AM station in Ramallah on 675 kHz; numerous local, private stations are reported to be in operation (2000)
AM 16, FM 8, shortwave 2 (1998)
Railways - total: 2,440 km


broad gauge: 2,440 km 1.520-m gauge (2005)
Religions Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2%
Sex ratio at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female


total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
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 (2006 est.)
Suffrage - 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: NA


domestic: NA


international: NA


note: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for communication services in the West Bank
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
Telephones - main lines in use 301,600 (total for West Bank and Gaza Strip) (2002) 376,100 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular 480,000 (cellular subscribers in both West Bank and Gaza Strip) (2003) 52,000 (2004)
Television broadcast stations NA 4 (government owned and programmed) (2004)
Terrain mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in west
Total fertility rate 4.4 children born/woman (2005 est.) 3.37 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate 27.2% (includes Gaza Strip) (2004 est.) 60% (2004 est.)
Waterways - 1,300 km (Amu Darya and Kara Kum canal important inland waterways) (2006)
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