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

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Background: Annexed by Russia between 1865 and 1885 Turkmenistan became a Soviet republic in 1925. 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 can be worked out.


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Location: Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan

Geographic coordinates

Map reference: Commonwealth of Independent States - Central Asian States

Area
Total area total: 488,100 km²
Land: 488,100 km²
Comparative: slightly larger than California

Land boundaries: total 3,736 km, Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km

Coastline: 0 km
Note: Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km)

Maritime claims: none; landlocked

Climate: subtropical desert

Terrain: flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in west

Elevation

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, sulphur, salt

Land use
Arable land: 2%
Permanent crops: 0%
Meadows and pastures: 69%
Forest and woodland: 0%
Other: 29%

Irrigated land: 12,450 km² (1990)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards

Geography
Note: landlocked


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Population: 4,075,316 (July 1995 est.)
Growth rate: 1.97% (1995 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Turkmen(s)
Adjective: Turkmen

Ethnic groups: Turkmen 73.3%, Russian 9.8%, Uzbek 9%, Kazakh 2%, other 5.9%

Languages: Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7%

Religions: Muslim 87%, Eastern Orthodox 11%, unknown 2%

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 40% (female 798,620; male 821,550)
15-64 years: 56% (female 1,155,392; male 1,128,844)
65 years and over: 4% (female 105,424; male 65,486) (July 1995 est.)

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 1.97% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 29.93 births/1000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 7.34 deaths/1000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: -2.92 migrant(s)/1000 population (1995 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: contamination of soil and groundwater with agricultural chemicals, pesticides; salinization, 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
Current issues natural hazards: NA
Current issues international agreements: party to - Ozone Layer Protection

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 68.5 deaths/1000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 65.35 years
Male: 61.85 years
Female: 69.02 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.72 children born/woman (1995 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 15 and over can read and write (1989)
Total population: 98%
Male: 99%
Female: 97%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: none
Conventional short form: Turkmenistan
Local long form: none
Local short form: Turkmenistan
Former: Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic

Government type: republic

Capital: Ashgabat

Administrative divisions: 5 welayatlar (singular - welayat):Ahal Welayaty (Ashgabat), Balkan Welayaty (Nebitdag), Dashhowuz Welayaty (formerly Tashauz), Lebap Welayaty (Charjew), Mary Welayaty
Note: names in parentheses are administrative centers when name differs from welayat name

Dependent areas

Independence: 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union)

National holiday: Independence Day, 27 October (1991)

Constitution: adopted 18 May 1992

Legal system: based on civil law system

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Saparmurad NIYAZOV (since NA October 1990); election last held 21 June 1992 (next to be held NA 2002); results - Saparmurad NIYAZOV 99.5% (ran unopposed); note - a 15 January 1994 referendum extended NIYAZOV's term an additional five years until 2002 (99.99% approval)
Head of government: Prime Minister (vacant); Deputy Prime Ministers Orazgeldi AYDOGDIYEV (since NA), Babamurad BAZAROV (since NA), Khekim ISHANOV (since NA), Valeriy OTCHERTSOV (since NA), Yagmur OVEZOV (since NA), Matkarim RAJAPOV (since NA), Abad RIZAYEVA (since NA), Rejep SAPAROV (since NA), Boris SHIKHMURADOV (since NA), Batyr SARJAYEV (since NA)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers

Legislative branch: under 1992 constitution there are two parliamentary bodies, a unicameral People's Council (Halk Maslahaty - having more than 100 members and meeting infrequently) and a 50-member unicameral Assembly (Majlis)
Assembly Majlis: elections last held 11 December 1994 (next to be held NA); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (50 total) Democratic Party 45, other 5; note - all 50 preapproved by President NIYAZOV

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation: CCC, CIS, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, IBRD, ICAO, IDB, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NACC, OIC, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Khalil UGUR
In the us chancery: 1511 K Street NW, Suite 412, Washington, DC 20,005
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 737-4,800
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 737-1152
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph S. HULINGS III
From the us embassy: 6 Teheran Street, Yubilenaya Hotel, Ashgabat
From the us mailing address: use embassy street address
From the us telephone: [7] (3,632) 24-49-25, 24-49-22
From the us FAX: [7] (3,632) 25-53-79

Flag description: green field, including a vertical stripe on the hoist side, with a claret vertical stripe in between containing five white, black, and orange carpet guls (an assymetrical design used in producing rugs) associated with five different tribes; a white crescent and five white stars in the upper left corner to the right of the carpet guls

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Turkmenistan is largely desert country with nomadic cattle raising, intensive agriculture in irrigated oases, and huge gas and oil resources. Half its irrigated land is planted in cotton making it the world's tenth largest producer. It also has the world's fifth largest reserves of natural gas and significant oil resources. Until the end of 1993, Turkmenistan had experienced less economic disruption than other former Soviet states because its economy received a boost from higher prices for oil and gas and a sharp increase in hard currency earnings. In 1994, Russia's refusal to export Turkmen gas to hard currency markets and mounting debts of its major customers in the former USSR for gas deliveries contributed to a sharp fall in industrial production and caused the budget to shift from a surplus to a slight deficit. Furthermore, 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. With the onset of economic hard times, even cautious moves toward economic restructuring and privatization have slowed down. For 1995, Turkmenistan will face continuing constraints on its earnings because of its customers' inability to pay for their gas and a low average cotton crop in 1994. Turkmenistan is working hard to open new gas export channels through Iran and Turkey, but these may take many years to realize.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: -24% (1994 est.)

Real gdp per capita: $3,280 (1994 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: cotton, grain, animal husbandry

Industries: natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing

Industrial production growth rate: -25% (1994)

Labor force: 1.642 million (January 1994)
By occupation agriculture and forestry: 44%
By occupation industry and construction: 20%
By occupation other: 36% (1992)

Unemployment rate: NA

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $N/A
Expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $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: $382 million to states outside the FSU (1994)
Commodoties: natural gas, cotton, petroleum products, electricity, textiles, carpets
Partners: Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Eastern Europe, Turkey, Argentina

Imports: $304 million from states outside the FSU (1994)
Commodoties: machinery and parts, grain and food, plastics and rubber, consumer durables, textiles
Partners: Russia, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkey

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: NEGL

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: manats per US$1 - multiple rate system:10 (official) and 230 (permitted in transactions between the government and individuals)


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Electricity
Capacity: 2,480,000 kW
Production: 10.5 billion kWh
Production consumption per capita: 2,600 kWh (1994)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones

Telephone system: NA telephones; only 7.5 telephones/100 persons (1991); poorly developed
Local: NA
Intercity: NA
International: linked by cable and microwave 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; 1 Orbita and 1 INTELSAT earth station

Broadcast media

Internet

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures: $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: 64
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 13
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 8
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 7
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 35

Heliports

Pipelines: crude oil 250 km; natural gas 4,400 km

Railways

Roadways

Waterways

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: illicit cultivator of cannabis and opium poppy; mostly for CIS consumption; limited government eradication program; used as transshipment point for illicit drugs from Southwest Asia to Western Europe