Background: Russia conquered the territory of present-day Uzbekistan in the late 19th century. Stiff resistance to the Red Army after the Bolshevik Revolution was eventually suppressed and a socialist republic established 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 degraded and the Aral Sea and certain rivers half dry. Independent since 1991 the country has lessened its dependence on the cotton monoculture by diversifying agricultural production while developing its mineral and petroleum export capacity and increasing its manufacturing base. However longserving septuagenarian President Islom KARIMOV who rose through the ranks of the Soviet-era State Planning Committee (Gosplan) remains wedded to the concepts of a command economy creating a challenging environment for foreign investment. Current concerns include post-KARIMOV succession terrorism by Islamic militants economic stagnation and the curtailment of human rights and democratization.

Geographic coordinates: 41 00 N 64 00 E

Area
Rank: 57
Land: 425,400 km²
Water: 22,000 km²
Comparative: slightly larger than California

Land boundaries
Border countries: (5) Afghanistan 137 km; Kazakhstan 2,203 km; Kyrgyzstan 1099 km; Tajikistan 1161 km; Turkmenistan 1621 km

Coastline: 0 km (doubly landlocked); note - Uzbekistan includes the southern portion of the Aral Sea with a 420 km shoreline

Maritime claims: none (doubly 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 Syr Darya (Sirdaryo) and Zarafshon; Fergana Valley in east surrounded by mountainous Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan; shrinking Aral Sea in west

Elevation
Extremes highest point: Adelunga Toghi 4,301 m

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

Land use
Permanent crops: 0.8%
Other: 89.58% (2011)

Irrigated land: 41,980 km² (2005)

Total renewable water resources: 48.87 km³ (2011)

Natural hazards: NA

Geography
Note: along with Liechtenstein one of the only two doubly landlocked countries in the world

Population: 28,929,716 (July 2014 est.)
Rank: 45
Growth rate: 0.93% (2014 est.)
Growth rate rank: 125
Below poverty line: 17% (2011 est.)

Nationality
Adjective: Uzbekistani

Ethnic groups: Uzbek 80% Russian 5.5% Tajik 5% Kazakh 3% Karakalpak 2.5% Tatar 1.5% other 2.5% (1996 est.)

Languages: Uzbek (official) 74.3% Russian 14.2% Tajik 4.4% other 7.1%

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

Age structure
15-24 years: 20.5% (male 3,008,779/female 2,934,534)
25-54 years: 43% (male 6,178,921/female 6,255,715)
55-64 years: 6.8% (male 926,129/female 1,036,576)
65 years and over: 4.7% (male 588,881/female 791,609) (2014 est.)

Dependency ratios
Youth dependency ratio: 42 %
Elderly dependency ratio: 6.3 %
Potential support ratio: 15.8 (2014 est.)

Median age
Male: 26.6 years
Female: 27.7 years (2014 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.93% (2014 est.)
Rank: 125

Birth rate: 17.02 births/1000 population (2014 est.)
Rank: 109

Death rate: 5.29 deaths/1000 population (2014 est.)
Rank: 180

Net migration rate: -2.46 migrant(s)/1000 population (2014 est.)
Rank: 173

Urbanization
Rate of urbanization: 1.27% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)

Major urban areas
Population: TASHKENT (capital) 2.227 million (2011)

Environment
Current issues: shrinkage of the Aral Sea has resulted in growing concentrations of chemical pesticides and natural salts; these substances are then blown from the increasingly exposed lake bed and contribute to desertification and respiratory health problems; 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
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
0-14 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2014 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth: 23.8 (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Rank: 91
Male: 23.54 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 15.93 deaths/1000 live births (2014 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Rank: 125
Male: 70.25 years
Female: 76.52 years (2014 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.8 children born/woman (2014 est.)
Rank: 154

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 64.9% (2006)

Drinking water source:

Physicians density: 2.54 physicians/1000 population (2010)

Hospital bed density: 4.5 beds/1000 population (2010)

Sanitation facility access:

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.1% (2012 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 150
People living with hivaids: 29,700 (2012 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 72
Deaths: 2,400 (2012 est.)
Deaths rank: 56

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 15.1% (2008)
Rank: 119

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 4.4% (2006)
Rank: 97

Education expenditures: NA

Literacy
Total population: 99.4%
Male: 99.6%
Female: 99.2% (2011 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Male: 12 years
Female: 11 years (2011)

Country name
Conventional short form: Uzbekistan
Local long form: O'zbekiston Respublikasi
Local short form: O'zbekiston
Former: Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic

Government type: republic; authoritarian presidential rule with little power outside the executive branch

Capital
Geographic coordinates: 41 19 N 69 15 E
Time difference: UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington DC during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions: 12 provinces (viloyatlar singular - viloyat) 1 autonomous republic* (avtonom respublikasi) and 1 city** (shahar); Andijon Viloyati Buxoro Viloyati Farg'ona Viloyati Jizzax Viloyati Namangan Viloyati Navoiy Viloyati Qashqadaryo Viloyati (Qarshi) Qoraqalpog'iston Respublikasi [Karakalpakstan Republic]* (Nukus) Samarqand Viloyati Sirdaryo Viloyati (Guliston) Surxondaryo Viloyati (Termiz) Toshkent Shahri [Tashkent City]** Toshkent Viloyati [Tashkent province] Xorazm Viloyati (Urganch)

Independence: 1 September 1991 (from the Soviet Union)

National holiday: Independence Day 1 September (1991)

Constitution: several previous; latest adopted 8 December 1992; amended several times last in 2012 (2012)

Legal system: civil law system

International law organization participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Head of government: Prime Minister Shavkat MIRZIYOYEV (since 11 December 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister Rustam AZIMOV (since 2 January 2008)
Cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president with approval of both chambers of the Supreme Assembly (Oliy Majlis)
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term; previously was a five-year term extended by a 2002 constitutional amendment to seven years and changed back to five years in 2011); election last held on 23 December 2007 (next to be held first quarter 2015); prime minister ministers and deputy ministers appointed by the president; note - to present a facade of democracy the president nominates a candidate for prime minister who then must be approved by a majority vote in both chambers of parliament
Election results: Islom KARIMOV reelected president; percent of vote - Islom KARIMOV 88.1% Asliddin RUSTAMOV 3.2% Dilorom TOSHMUHAMEDOVA 2.9% Akmal SAIDOV 2.6% other 3.2%

Legislative branch: bicameral Supreme Assembly or Oliy Majlis consists of an upper house or Senate (100 seats; 84 members elected by regional governing councils and 16 appointed by the president; members to serve five-year terms) and a lower house or Legislative Chamber (Qonunchilik Palatasi) (150 seats; 135 members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms while 15 spots reserved for the Ecological Movement of Uzbekistan)
Elections: last held on 27 December 2009 and 10 January 2010 (next to be held in December 2014)
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 53 NDP 32 National Rebirth Party 31 Adolat 19

Judicial branch
Judge selection and term of office: judges of the 3 highest courts nominated by the president and confirmed by the Oliy Majlis; judges appointed for 5-year terms subject to reappointment
Subordinate courts: regional district city and town courts

Political parties and leaders:

International organization participation: ADB CICA CIS EAPC EBRD ECO FAO IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC (NGOs) ICRM IDA IDB IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF Interpol IOC ISO ITSO ITU MIGA NAM OIC OPCW OSCE PFP SCO UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UNWTO UPU WCO WFTU (NGOs) WHO WIPO WMO WTO (observer)

Diplomatic representation
In the us chancery: 1746 Massachusetts Avenue NW Washington DC 20,036
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 887-5,300
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 293-6,804
In the us consulate general: New York
From the us embassy: 3 Moyqo'rq'on 5th Block Yunusobod District Tashkent 100,093
From the us mailing address: use embassy street address
From the us telephone: [998] (71) 120-5,450
From the us FAX: [998] (71) 120-6,335

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of blue (top) white and green separated by red fimbriations with a white crescent moon (closed side to the hoist) and 12 white stars shifted to the hoist on the top band; blue is the color of the Turkic peoples and of the sky white signifies peace and the striving for purity in thoughts and deeds while green represents nature and is the color of Islam; the red stripes are the vital force of all living organisms that links good and pure ideas with the eternal sky and with deeds on earth; the crescent represents Islam and the 12 stars the months and constellations of the Uzbek calendar

National symbols: khumo (mythical bird)

National anthem
Lyrics and music: Abdulla ARIPOV/Mutal BURHANOV

Economy overview: Uzbekistan is a dry landlocked country; 11% of the land is intensely cultivated in irrigated river valleys. More than 60% of the population lives in densely populated rural communities. Export of hydrocarbons primarily natural gas provides a significant share of foreign exchange earnings. Other major export earners include gold and cotton. Despite ongoing efforts to diversify crops Uzbekistani agriculture remains largely centered around cotton although production has dropped by 35% since 1991. Uzbekistan is now the world's fifth largest cotton exporter and sixth largest producer. The country is addressing international criticism for the use of child labor in its cotton harvest. Following independence in September 1991 the government sought to prop up its Soviet-style command economy with subsidies and tight controls on production and prices. While aware of the need to improve the investment climate the government still sponsors measures that often increase not decrease its 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 Article VIII obligations under the 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 Central Bank often delays or restricts convertibility especially for consumer goods. Uzbekistan's growth has been driven primarily by state-led investments and a favorable export environment. In the past Uzbekistani authorities have accused US and other foreign companies operating in Uzbekistan of violating Uzbekistani laws and have frozen and even seized their assets. At the same time the Uzbekistani Government has actively courted several major US and international corporations offering financing and tax advantages. A major US automaker opened a powertrain manufacturing facility in Tashkent in November 2011 but there have been no sizable US investments since then. Diminishing foreign investment and difficulties transporting goods across borders further challenge the economy of Uzbekistan.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Rank: 70

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 23

Real gdp per capita:
Rank: 171

Gdp composition by end use
Government consumption: 16.6%
Investment in fixed capital: 23.5%
Investment in inventories: 4.9%
Exports of goods and services: 28%
Imports of goods and services: -31.3%: (2011 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Industry: 32.2%
Services: 48.7% (2013 est.)

Agriculture products: cotton vegetables fruits grain; livestock

Industries: textiles food processing machine building metallurgy mining hydrocarbon extraction chemicals

Industrial production growth rate: 7.1% (2013 est.)
Rank: 32

Labor force: 16.99 million (2013 est.)
Rank: 37
By occupation industry: 13.2%
By occupation services: 60.9% (2012 est.)

Unemployment rate: 4.9% (2012 est.)
Rank: 47

Population below poverty line: 17% (2011 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Highest 10: 29.6% (2003)

Distribution of family income gini index: 44.7 (1998)
Rank: 81

Budget
Expenditures: $18.05 billion (2013 est.)
Surplus or deficit: -0.4% of GDP (2013 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 52

Taxes and other revenues: 32.3% of GDP (2013 est.)
Rank: 80

Public debt: 6.2% of GDP (2012 est.)
Rank: 152

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 11.4% (2012 est.)
Rank: 209

Stock of narrow money: $5.994 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Rank: 93

Stock of broad money: $9.463 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Rank: 103

Stock of domestic credit: $7.244 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Rank: 103

Market value of publicly traded shares: $715.3 million (31 December 2006)
Rank: 100

Current account balance: $1.807 billion (2012 est.)
Rank: 43

Exports: $14.38 billion (2012 est.)
Rank: 80
Commodities: energy products cotton gold mineral fertilizers ferrous and nonferrous metals textiles food products machinery automobiles
Partners: China 21.2% Kazakhstan 15.9% Turkey 15.8% Russia 14.7% Bangladesh 9.5% Kyrgyzstan 4% (2012)

Imports: $12.06 billion (2012 est.)
Rank: 90
Commodities: machinery and equipment foodstuffs chemicals ferrous and nonferrous metals
Partners: Russia 20.7% China 16.6% South Korea 16.4% Kazakhstan 12.5% Germany 4.6% Turkey 4.2% Ukraine 4% (2012)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $16 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Rank: 64

Debt external: $7.342 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Rank: 103

Stock of direct foreign investment at home: $N/A

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad: $N/A

Exchange rates:

Electricity
Production: 52.53 billion kWh (2012 est.)
Production rank: 51
Consumption: 44.51 billion kWh (2010 est.)
Consumption rank: 51
Exports: 12.09 billion kWh (2010 est.)
Exports rank: 18
Imports: 12 billion kWh (2010 est.)
Imports rank: 15
Installed generating capacity: 11.6 million kW (2010 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 51
Generation sources fossil fuels: 85.1% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 90
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 197
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 14.9% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 101
Generation sources other renewable sources: 0% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 134

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 102,600 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 50
Crude oil exports: 0 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 200
Crude oil imports: 0 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 135
Crude oil proven reserves: 594 million bbl (1 January 2013 est.)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 48

Refined petroleum
Products production: 92,300 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Products production rank: 75
Products consumption: 137,100 bbl/day (2011 est.)
Products consumption rank: 71
Products exports: 4,968 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Products exports rank: 90
Products imports: 656 bbl/day (2010 est.)
Products imports rank: 200

Natural gas
Production: 62.9 billion m³ (2012 est.)
Production rank: 14
Consumption: 46.8 billion m³ (2012 est.)
Consumption rank: 18
Exports: 13.4 billion m³ (2012 est.)
Exports rank: 21
Imports: 0 m³ (2012 est.)
Imports rank: 143
Proven reserves: 1.841 trillion m³ (1 January 2013 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 19

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 115.9 million Mt (2011 est.)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 1.963 million (2012)
Main lines in use rank: 60
Mobile cellular: 20.274 million (2012)
Mobile cellular rank: 48

Telephone system
Domestic: the state-owned telecommunications company Uzbektelecom owner of the fixed line telecommunications system has used loans from the Japanese government and the China Development Bank to upgrade fixed-line services including conversion to digital exchanges; mobile-cellular services are provided by 3 private and 1 state-owned operator with a total subscriber base of 19 million as of January 2014
International: country code - 998; linked by fiber-optic cable or microwave radio relay with CIS member states and to other countries by leased connection via the Moscow international gateway switch; the country also has a link to the Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic cable; Uzbekistan has supported the national fiber optic backbone project of Afghanistan since 2008 (2009)

Broadcast media: government controls media; 14 state-owned broadcasters - 10 TV and 4 radio - provide service to virtually the entire country; about 20 privately owned TV stations overseen by local officials broadcast to local markets; privately owned TV stations are required to lease transmitters from the government-owned Republic TV and Radio Industry Corporation; in 2013 the government closed TV and radio broadcasters affiliated with the National Association of Electronic Mass Media of Uzbekistan a government-sponsored NGO for private broadcast media

Internet
Country code: .uz
Hosts: 56,075 (2012)
Hosts rank: 94
Users: 4.689 million (2009)
Users rank: 50

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for compulsory military service; 1-month or 1-year conscript service obligation for males; moving toward a professional military but conscription in some form will continue; the military cannot accommodate everyone who wishes to enlist and competition for entrance into the military is similar to the competition for admission to universities (2013)

Airports: 53 (2013)
Rank: 89
With paved runways over 3047 m: 6
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 13
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 6
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 4
With paved runways under 914 m: 4 (2013)
With unpaved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 2
With unpaved runways: 18 (2013)

Pipelines: gas 10,401 km; oil 944 km (2013)

Railways
Rank: 40
Broad gauge: 4,200 km 1.520-m gauge (930 km electrified) (2012)

Roadways
Rank: 52
Paved: 75,511 km
Unpaved: 10,985 km (2000)

Waterways: 1100 km (2012)
Rank: 63

Disputes international: prolonged drought and cotton monoculture in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan created water-sharing difficulties for Amu Darya river states; field demarcation of the boundaries with Kazakhstan commenced in 2004; border delimitation of 130 km of border with Kyrgyzstan is hampered by serious disputes around enclaves and other areas

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