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Compare Western Sahara (2008) - Turkmenistan (2005)
Compare Western Sahara (2008) z Turkmenistan (2005)
| Western Sahara (2008) | Turkmenistan (2005) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | none (under de facto control of Morocco) | 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: 45.4% (male 88,176/female 85,421)
15-64 years: 52.3% (male 98,345/female 101,895) 65 years and over: 2.3% (male 3,705/female 5,075) (2007 est.) |
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.) |
| Agriculture - products | fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads); fish | cotton, grain; livestock |
| Airports | 9 (2007) | 53 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2007) |
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.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
total: 30
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 26 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total: 266,000 sq km
land: 266,000 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 488,100 sq km
land: 488,100 sq km water: negl. |
| Area - comparative | about the size of Colorado | slightly larger than California |
| Background | Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991 UN-brokered cease-fire; a UN-organized referendum on final status has been repeatedly postponed. In April 2007, Morocco presented an autonomy plan for the territory to the UN, which the U.S. considers serious and credible. The Polisario also presented a plan to the UN in 2007. Since August 2007, representatives from the Government of Morocco and the Polisario Front have met three times to negotiate the status of Western Sahara, with a fourth round of negotiations planned for March 2008. | 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. |
| Birth rate | NA 39.95 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 27.68 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
revenues: $3.05 billion
expenditures: $3.05 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
| Capital | none
time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Ashgabat |
| Climate | hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew | subtropical desert |
| Coastline | 1,110 km | 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: Western Sahara former: Spanish Sahara |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Turkmenistan local long form: none local short form: Turkmenistan former: Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic |
| Death rate | NA | 8.78 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Debt - external | $NA | $2.4 billion to $5 billion (2001 est.) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | none | 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 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | none | 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 |
| Disputes - international | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, whose sovereignty remains unresolved; UN-administered cease-fire has remained in effect since September 1991, administered by the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), but attempts to hold a referendum have failed and parties thus far have rejected all brokered proposals; several states have extended diplomatic relations to the "Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic" represented by the Polisario Front in exile in Algeria, while others recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara; most of the approximately 102,000 Sahrawi refugees are sheltered in camps in Tindouf, Algeria | 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 | $NA | $16 million from the US (2001) |
| Economy - overview | Western Sahara depends on pastoral nomadism, fishing, and phosphate mining as the principal sources of income for the population. The territory lacks sufficient rainfall for sustainable agricultural production, and most of the food for the urban population must be imported. Incomes in Western Sahara are substantially below the Moroccan level. The Moroccan Government controls all trade and other economic activities in Western Sahara. Morocco and the EU signed a four-year agreement in July 2006 allowing European vessels to fish off the coast of Morocco, including the disputed waters off the coast of Western Sahara. Moroccan energy interests in 2001 signed contracts to explore for oil off the coast of Western Sahara, which has angered the Polisario. However, in 2006 the Polisario awarded similar exploration licenses in the disputed territory, which would come into force if Morocco and the Polisario resolve their dispute over Western Sahara. | 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. |
| Electricity - consumption | 79.05 million kWh (2005) | 8.908 billion kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 1.136 billion kWh (2004) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production | 85 million kWh (2005) | 11.41 billion kWh (2004 est.) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m
highest point: unnamed location 463 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)
highest point: Gora Ayribaba 3,139 m |
| Environment - current issues | sparse water and lack of arable land | 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: none of the selected agreements
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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 | Arab, Berber | Turkmen 85%, Uzbek 5%, Russian 4%, other 6% (2003) |
| Exchange rates | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 8.2827 (2007), 8.7722 (2006), 8.865 (2005), 8.868 (2004), 9.5744 (2003) | 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 |
| Executive branch | none | 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% |
| Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | NA |
| Exports - commodities | phosphates 62% | gas, crude oil, petrochemicals, cotton fiber, textiles |
| Exports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2006) | Ukraine 46.6%, Iran 17.3%, Turkey 4.2%, Italy 4.1% (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 |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: 40% |
agriculture: 28.5%
industry: 42.7% services: 28.8% (2004 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $5,700 (2004 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | NA% | IMF estimate: 7.5%
note: official government statistics show 21.4% growth, but these estimates are notoriously unreliable (2004 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 24 30 N, 13 00 W | 40 00 N, 60 00 E |
| Geography - note | the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas | 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 (2004 est.) |
| Highways | - | total: 24,000 km
paved: 19,488 km unpaved: 4,512 km (1999 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 | 1,698 bbl/day (2004) | NA |
| Imports - commodities | fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs | machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs |
| Imports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2006) | 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) |
| Independence | - | 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA% | official government estimate: 22% (2003 est.) |
| Industries | phosphate mining, handicrafts | natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing |
| Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
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.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 9% (2004 est.) |
| International organization participation | none | 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 |
| Irrigated land | NA | 17,500 sq km (2003 est.) |
| Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) |
| Labor force | 12,000 | 2.32 million (2003 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 50%
industry and services: 50% |
agriculture 48.2%, industry 13.8%, services 37% (2003 est.) |
| Land boundaries | total: 2,046 km
border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km |
total: 3,736 km
border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km |
| Land use | arable land: 0.02%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.98% (2005) |
arable land: 3.72%
permanent crops: 0.14% other: 96.14% (2001) |
| Languages | Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic | 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)
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 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total population: 61.39 years
male: 58.02 years female: 64.93 years (2005 est.) |
| Literacy | NA | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.8% male: 99.3% female: 98.3% (1995 est.) |
| Location | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco | Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan |
| Map references | Africa | Asia |
| Maritime claims | contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue | none (landlocked) |
| 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) |
| Military branches | - | Ground Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces (2004) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $90 million (FY99) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 3.4% (FY99) |
| National holiday | - | Independence Day, 27 October (1991) |
| Nationality | noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
adjective: Sahrawi, Sahrawian, Sahraouian |
noun: Turkmen(s)
adjective: Turkmen |
| Natural hazards | hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind can occur during winter and spring; widespread harmattan haze exists 60% of time, often severely restricting visibility | NA |
| Natural resources | phosphates, iron ore | petroleum, natural gas, sulfur, salt |
| Net migration rate | - | -0.81 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 |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
| Population | 382,617
note: estimate is based on projections by age, sex, fertility, mortality, and migration; fertility and mortality are based on data from neighboring countries (July 2007 est.) |
4,952,081 (July 2005 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | 58% (2003 est.) |
| Population growth rate | NA | 1.81% (2005 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | - | Turkmenbasy |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 16, FM 8, shortwave 2 (1998) |
| Railways | - | total: 2,440 km
broad gauge: 2,440 km 1.520-m gauge (2004) |
| Religions | Muslim | Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2% |
| Sex ratio | NA | 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.) |
| Suffrage | none; a UN-sponsored voter identification campaign not yet completed | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: sparse and limited system
domestic: NA international: country code - 212; tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and satellite; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) linked to Rabat, Morocco |
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 | about 2,000 (1999 est.) | 374,000 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1999) | 52,000 (2004) |
| Television broadcast stations | NA | 4 (government owned and programmed) (2004) |
| Terrain | mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast | 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 | NA | 3.41 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | NA% | 60% (2004 est.) |
| Waterways | - | 1,300 km (Amu Darya and Kara Kum canal important inland waterways) (2003) |
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