Map of Uzbekistan | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide198919901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024 | More stats

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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 1925. 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 militant groups from Tajikistan and Afghanistan a non-convertible currency and the curtailment of human rights and democratization.


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Location: Central Asia, bordering the Aral Sea, between Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan

Geographic coordinates

Map reference: Asia, Commonwealth of Independent States - Central Asian States, Standard Time Zones of the World

Area
Total area total: 447,400 km²
Land: 425,400 km²

Land boundaries: total 6,221 km, Afghanistan 137 km, Kazakhstan 2,203 km, Kyrgyzstan 1,099 km, Tajikistan 1,161 km, Turkmenistan 1,621 km

Coastline: 0 km
Note: Uzbekistan borders the Aral Sea (420 km)

Maritime claims: none; landlocked

Climate: mostly midlatitude desert, long, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid grassland in east

Terrain: mostly flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes; broad, flat intensely irrigated river valleys along course of Amu Darya and Sirdaryo Rivers; Fergana Valley in east surrounded by mountainous Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan; shrinking Aral Sea in west

Elevation

Natural resources: natural gas, petroleum, coal, gold, uranium, silver, copper, lead and zinc, tungsten, molybdenum

Land use
Arable land: 10%
Permanent crops: 1%
Meadows and pastures: 47%
Forest and woodland: 0%
Other: 42%

Irrigated land: 41,550 km² (1990)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: NA

Geography
Note: landlocked


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Population: 22,608,866 (July 1994 est.)
Growth rate: 2.13% (1994 est.)

Nationality: noun:Uzbek(s)

Ethnic groups: Uzbek 71.4%, Russian 8.3%, Tajik 4.7%, Kazakh 4.1%, Tatar 2.4%, Karakalpak 2.1%, other 7%

Languages: Uzbek 74.3%, Russian 14.2%, Tajik 4.4%, other 7.1%

Religions: Muslim 88% (mostly Sunnis), Eastern Orthodox 9%, other 3%

Demographic profile

Age structure

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 2.13% (1994 est.)

Birth rate: 30.01 births/1000 population (1994 est.)

Death rate: 6.51 deaths/1000 population (1994 est.)

Net migration rate: -2.22 migrant(s)/1000 population (1994 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: drying up 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 is the cause of many human health disorders; increasing soil salinization; soil contamination from agricultural chemicals, including DDT

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 53.2 deaths/1000 live births (1994 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 68.58 years
Male: 65.28 years
Female: 72.04 years (1994 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.73 children born/woman (1994 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy: age 9-49 can read and write (1970)
Total population: 100%
Male: 100%
Female: 100%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Uzbekistan
Conventional short form:
Former: Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic

Government type: republic

Capital: Tashkent (Toshkent)

Administrative divisions: 12 wiloyatlar (singular - wiloyat), 1 autonomous republic* (respublikasi, singular - respublika), and 1 city** (shahri); Andijon Wiloyati, Bukhoro Wiloyati, Jizzakh Wiloyati, Farghona Wiloyati, Karakalpakstan* (Nukus), Qashqadaryo Wiloyati (Qarshi), Khorazm Wiloyati (Urganch), Namangan Wiloyati, Nawoiy Wiloyati, Samarqand Wiloyati, Sirdaryo Wiloyati (Guliston), Surkhondaryo Wiloyati (Termiz), Toshkent Shahri**, Toshkent Wiloyati
Note: an administrative division has the same name as its administrative center (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses)

Dependent areas

Independence: 31 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)

National holiday: Independence Day, 1 September (1991)

Constitution: new constitution adopted 8 December 1992

Legal system: evolution of Soviet civil law; still lacks independent judicial system

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Islam KARIMOV (since NA March 1990); election last held 29 December 1991 (next to be held NA December 1996); results - Islam KARIMOV 86%, Mukhammad SOLIKH 12%, other 2%
Head of government: Prime Minister Abdulkhashim MUTALOV (since 13 January 1992), First Deputy Prime Minister Ismail Hakimovitch DJURABEKOV (since NA)

Legislative branch: Army, National Guard, Republic Security Forces (internal and border troops)
Supreme Soviet: elections last held 18 February 1990 (next to be held winter 1994); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (500 total) Communist 450, ERK 10, other 40; note - total number of seats will be reduced to 250 in next election

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation: CCC, CIS, CSCE, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, ILO, IMF, IOC, ITU, NACC, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, WHO, WMO

Diplomatic representation
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Henry L. CLARKE
From the us chancery: Suites 619 and 623, 1511 K Street NW, Washington DC, 20,005
From the us telephone: [7] (3,712) 77-14-07, 77-11-32
From the us fax: (202) 638-4,268
From the us consulates general: New York
From the us embassy: 82 Chelanzanskaya, Tashkent
From the us mailing address: use embassy street address
From the us FAX: [7] (3,712) 77-69-53

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and green separated by red fimbriations with a crescent moon and 12 stars in the upper hoist-side quadrant

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Uzbekistan is a dry, landlocked country of which 20% is intensely cultivated, irrigated river valleys. It is one of the poorest states of the former USSR with 60% of its population living in overpopulated rural communities. Nevertheless, Uzbekistan is the world's third largest cotton exporter, a major producer of gold and natural gas, and a regionally significant producer of chemicals and machinery. Since independence, the government has sought to prop up the Soviet-style command economy with subsidies and tight controls on prices and production. Such policies have buffered the economy from the sharp declines in output and high inflation experienced by many other former Soviet republics. By late 1993, however, they had become increasingly unsustainable as inflation soared and Russia forced the Uzbek Government to introduce its own currency. Faced with mounting economic problems, the government has increased its cooperation with international financial institutions, announced an acceleration of privatization, and stepped up efforts to attract foreign investors. Nevertheless, the regime is likely to resist full-fledged market reforms.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: -3.5% (1993 est.)

Real gdp per capita: $2,430 (1993 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: livestock, cotton, vegetables, fruits, grain

Industries: textiles, food processing, machine building, metallurgy, natural gas

Industrial production growth rate: -7% (1993)

Labor force: 8.234 million
By occupation agriculture and forestry: 43%
By occupation industry and construction: 22%
By occupation other: 35% (1992)

Unemployment rate: 0.2% includes only officially registered unemployed; large numbers of underemployed workers

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget: revenues:$NA

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $706.5 million to outside the FSU countries (1993)
Commodities: cotton, gold, natural gas, mineral fertilizers, ferrous metals, textiles, food products
Partners: Russia, Ukraine, Eastern Europe, US

Imports: $947.3 million from outside the FSU countries (1993)
Commodities: grain, machinery and parts, consumer durables, other foods
Partners: principally other FSU countries, Czech Republic

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $NA

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: NA


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Electricity
Capacity: 11,950,000 kW
Production: 50.9 billion kWh
Consumption per capita: 2,300 kWh (1992)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones

Telephone system

Broadcast media

Internet

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $NA, NA% of GDP

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 265
Usable: 74
With permanentsurface runways: 30
With runways over 3659 m: 2
With runways 2440-3659 m: 20
With runways 10602439 m: 19
Note: a C-130 can land on a 1,060-m airstrip

Heliports

Pipelines: crude oil 250 km; petroleum products 40 km; natural gas 810 km (1992)

Railways

Roadways

Waterways

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: Russia may dispute current de facto maritime border to midpoint of Caspian Sea from shore

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: illicit cultivator of cannabis and opium poppy; mostly for CIS consumption; limited government eradication programs; used as transshipment points for illicit drugs to Western Europe