Economic Overview
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 10th-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. from 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 roughly 15% per year from 2003-07, largely because of higher international oil and gas prices. 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 reluctance to adopt market-oriented reforms. in the past, turkmenistan's economic statistics were state secrets. the new government has established a state agency for statistics, but gdp numbers and other figures are subject to wide margins of error. in particular, the rate of gdp growth is uncertain. since his election, president berdimuhamedow has sought to improve the health and education systems, ordered unification of the country's dual currency exchange rate, begun decreasing state subsidies for gasoline, signed an agreement to build a gas line to china, and created a special tourism zone on the caspian sea. all of these moves hint that the new post-nyyazow government will work to create a friendlier foreign investment environment.
Environmental Issues
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
Government Type
Republic; authoritarian presidential rule, with little power outside the executive branch
Population
5,179,571 (july 2008 est.)
Location
Central asia, bordering the caspian sea, between iran and kazakhstan
Area
Total: 488,100 sq km
land: 488,100 sq km
water: negl
Slightly larger than california
Country Aliases
Conventional long form: none
conventional short form: turkmenistan
local long form: none
local short form: turkmenistan
former: turkmen soviet socialist republic
Capital
Name: ashgabat (ashkhabad)
geographic coordinates: 37 57 n, 58 23 e
time difference: utc+5 (10 hours ahead of washington, dc during standard time)
Military Service
18-30 years of age for compulsory military service; 2-year conscript service obligation (2007)
International Disputes
Cotton monoculture in uzbekistan and turkmenistan creates water-sharing difficulties for amu darya river states; field demarcation of the boundaries with kazakhstan commenced in 2005, but caspian seabed delimitation remains stalled with azerbaijan, iran, and kazakhstan due to turkmenistan's indecision over how to allocate the sea's waters and seabed
Sources: Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
