Turkmenistan
Official Country Name
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan Overview
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. 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. President for life Saparmurat NIYAZOV died in December 2006 and Turkmenistan held its first multi-candidate presidential electoral process in February 2007. A former NIYAZOV aide, Gurbanguly BERDIMUHAMMEDOV emerged as the country's new president.
Turkmenistan 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 an average of 15% per year in 2003-06, largely because of higher international oil and gas prices. In 2006, Ashgabat raised its natural gas export prices to its main customer, Russia, from $66 per thousand cubic meters (tcm) to $100 per tcm. Overall prospects in the near future are discouraging because of widespread internal poverty, a poor educational system, government misuse of oil and gas revenues, and Ashgabat's 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. President BERDYMUKHAMMEDOV's election platform included plans to build a gas-line to China, to complete the AmuDarya railroad bridge in Lebap province, and to create special border trade zones in southern Balkan province - a hint that the new post-Niyozov government will work to create a friendliery foreign investment environment.
Turkmenistan Location
Turkmenistan is located in Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan
Region
Turkmenistan is located in Asia
Turkmenistan Population
Turkmenistan has population of 5,042,920 (July 2006 est.)
Turkmenistan Climate
Turkmenistan has subtropical desert
Turkmenistan 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
Turkmenistan Natural Resources
petroleum, natural gas, sulfur, salt
Ethnic Groups in Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan has the following ethnic groups - Turkmen 85%, Uzbek 5%, Russian 4%, other 6% (2003)
Turkmenistan Religions
Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2%
Turkmenistan Languages
Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7%
Turkmenistan Capital
Turkmenistan capital is Ashgabat (Ashkhabad)
Turkmenistan Currency
Turkmenistan currency is Turkmen manat
Map of Turkmenistan
