| Background: |
Native Kazakhs, a
mix of Turkic and Mongol nomadic tribes who migrated into
the region in the 13th century, were rarely united as a
single nation. The area was conquered by Russia in the 18th
century and Kazakhstan became a Soviet Republic in 1936.
During the 1950s and 1960s agricultural "Virgin
Lands" program, Soviet citizens were encouraged to help
cultivate Kazakhstan's northern pastures. This influx of
immigrants (mostly Russians, but also some other deported
nationalities) skewed the ethnic mixture and enabled
non-Kazakhs to outnumber natives. Independence has caused
many of these newcomers to emigrate. Current issues include:
developing a cohesive national identity; expanding the
development of the country's vast energy resources and
exporting them to world markets; and continuing to
strengthen relations with neighboring states and other
foreign powers. |
| Location: |
Central Asia,
northwest of China |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
48 00 N, 68 00 E |
| Map
references: |
Commonwealth of
Independent States |
| Area: |
total:
2,717,300 sq km
land: 2,669,800 sq km
water: 47,500 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly less
than four times the size of Texas |
| Land
boundaries: |
total:
12,012 km
border countries: China 1,533 km, Kyrgyzstan
1,051 km, Russia 6,846 km, Turkmenistan 379 km, Uzbekistan
2,203 km |
| Coastline: |
0 km
(landlocked); note - Kazakhstan borders the Aral Sea, now
split into two bodies of water (1,070 km), and the Caspian
Sea (1,894 km) |
| Maritime
claims: |
none (landlocked) |
| Climate: |
continental, cold
winters and hot summers, arid and semiarid |
| Terrain: |
extends from the
Volga to the Altai Mountains and from the plains in western
Siberia to oases and desert in Central Asia |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Vpadina Kaundy -132 m
highest point: Khan Tangiri Shyngy (Pik Khan-Tengri)
6,995 m |
| Natural
resources: |
major deposits of
petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, manganese, chrome
ore, nickel, cobalt, copper, molybdenum, lead, zinc,
bauxite, gold, uranium |
| Land
use: |
arable land:
12%
permanent crops: 11%
permanent pastures: 57%
forests and woodland: 4%
other: 16% (1996 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
22,000 sq km
(1996 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
earthquakes in
the south, mudslides around Almaty |
| Environment
- current issues: |
radioactive or
toxic chemical sites associated with its former defense
industries and test ranges are found throughout the country
and pose health risks for humans and animals; industrial
pollution is severe in some cities; because the two main
rivers which flowed into the Aral Sea have been diverted for
irrigation, it is drying up and leaving behind a harmful
layer of chemical pesticides and natural salts; these
substances are then picked up by the wind and blown into
noxious dust storms; pollution in the Caspian Sea; soil
pollution from overuse of agricultural chemicals and
salination from poor infrastructure and wasteful irrigation
practices |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to:
Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection,
Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol |
| Geography
- note: |
landlocked;
Russia leases approximately 6,000 sq km of territory
enclosing the Baykonur Cosmodrome |
| Population: |
16,731,303 (July
2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
26.73% (male 2,271,866; female 2,200,078)
15-64 years: 66.03% (male 5,358,535; female
5,688,550)
65 years and over: 7.24% (male 412,761; female
799,513) (2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
0.03% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
17.3 births/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
10.61
deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
-6.43 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.52 male(s)/female
total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2001
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
59.17
deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 63.29 years
male: 57.87 years
female: 68.97 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
2.07 children
born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
0.04% (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
3,500 (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- deaths: |
less than 100
(1999 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Kazakhstani(s)
adjective: Kazakhstani |
| Ethnic
groups: |
Kazakh (Qazaq)
53.4%, Russian 30%, Ukrainian 3.7%, Uzbek 2.5%, German 2.4%,
Uighur 1.4%, other 6.6% (1999 census) |
| Religions: |
Muslim 47%,
Russian Orthodox 44%, Protestant 2%, other 7% |
| Languages: |
Kazakh (Qazaq,
state language) 40%, Russian (official, used in everyday
business) 66% |
| Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98%
male: 99%
female: 96% (1989 est.) |
| Country
name: |
conventional
long form: Republic of Kazakhstan
conventional short form: Kazakhstan
local long form: Qazaqstan Respublikasy
local short form: none
former: Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic |
| Government
type: |
republic |
| Capital: |
Astana; note -
the government moved from Almaty to Astana in December 1998 |
| Administrative
divisions: |
14 oblystar
(singular - oblysy) and 3 cities (qala, singular - qalasy)*;
Almaty, Almaty*, Aqmola (Astana), Aqtobe, Astana*, Atyrau,
Batys Qazaqstan (Oral), Bayqongyr*, Mangghystau (Aqtau;
formerly Shevchenko), Ongtustik Qazaqstan (Shymkent),
Pavlodar, Qaraghandy, Qostanay, Qyzylorda, Shyghys Qazaqstan
(Oskemen; formerly Ust'-Kamenogorsk), Soltustik Qazaqstan (Petropavl),
Zhambyl (Taraz; formerly Dzhambul)
note: administrative divisions have the same
names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the
administrative center name following in parentheses); in
1995 the Governments of Kazakhstan and Russia entered into
an agreement whereby Russia would lease for a period of 20
years an area of 6,000 sq km enclosing the Baykonur space
launch facilities and the city of Bayqongyr (Baykonyr,
formerly Leninsk) |
| Independence: |
16 December 1991
(from the Soviet Union) |
| National
holiday: |
Republic Day, 25
October (1990) |
| Constitution: |
adopted by
national referendum 30 August 1995; first post-independence
constitution was adopted 28 January 1993 |
| Legal
system: |
based on civil
law system |
| Suffrage: |
18 years of age;
universal |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of
state: President Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV (chairman
of the Supreme Soviet from 22 February 1990, elected
president 1 December 1991)
head of government: Prime Minister Kazymzhomart
TOKAYEV (since 2 October 1999)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the
president
elections: president elected by popular vote
for a seven-year term; election last held 10 January 1999, a
year before it was previously scheduled (next to be held NA
2006); note - President NAZARBAYEV's previous term had been
extended to 2000 by a nationwide referendum held 30 April
1995; prime minister and first deputy prime minister
appointed by the president
election results: Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV
reelected president; percent of vote - Nursultan A.
NAZARBAYEV 81.7%, Serikbolsyn ABDILDIN 12.1%, Gani KASYMOV
4.7%, other 1.5%
note: President NAZARBAYEV expanded his
presidential powers by decree: only he can initiate
constitutional amendments, appoint and dismiss the
government, dissolve Parliament, call referenda at his
discretion, and appoint administrative heads of regions and
cities |
| Legislative
branch: |
bicameral
Parliament consists of the Senate (47 seats; 7 senators are
appointed by the president; other members are popularly
elected, two from each of the former oblasts and the former
capital of Almaty, to serve six-year terms) and the Majilis
(67 seats; the addition of 10 "Party List" seats
brings the total to 77; members are popularly elected to
serve five-year terms); note - with the oblasts being
reduced to 14, the Senate will eventually be reduced to 37;
a number of Senate seats come up for reelection every two
years
elections: Senate - (indirect) last held 17
September 1999 (next to be held NA 2001); Majilis - last
held 10 and 24 October and 26 December 1999 (next to be held
NA 2004)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by
party - NA%; seats by party - NA; 16 seats up for election
in 1999, candidates nominated by local councils; Majilis -
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Otan 23,
Civic Party 13, Communist Party 3, Agrarian Party 3,
People's Cooperative Party 1, independents 34; note - most
independent candidates are affiliated with parastatal
enterprises and other pro-government institutions |
| Judicial
branch: |
Supreme Court (44
members); Constitutional Council (7 members) |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
Agrarian Party [Romin
MADENOV]; Alash [Soverkazhy AKATAYEV]; AZAMAT Movement [Petr
SVOIK, Murat AUEZOV, and Galym ABILSIITOV, cochairmen];
Civic Party [Azat PERUASHEV, first secretary]; Communist
Party or KPK [Serikbolsyn ABDILDIN, first secretary]; Forum
of Democratic Forces [Nurbulat MASANOV, Deputy Chairman of
the Republican People's Party of Kazakhstan (RNPK); Amirzhan
KOSANOV, RNPK activist; Seidakhmet KUTTYKADAM, Orleu
Movement; cochairmen]; Labor and Worker's Movement [Madel
ISMAILOV, chairman]; Orleu Movement [Seidakhmet KUTTYKADAM];
Otan [Sergei TERESCHENKO, chairman]; Pensioners Movement or
Pokoleniye [Irina SAVOSTINA, chairwoman]; People's Congress
of Kazakhstan of NKK [Olzhas SULEIMENOV, chairman]; People's
Cooperative Party [Umirzak SARSENOV]; People's Unity Party
or PUP [Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV]; Republican People's Party
of Kazakhstan or RNPK [Akezhan KAZHEGELDIN] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
Kazakhstan
International Bureau on Human Rights [Yevgeniy ZHOVTIS,
executive director] |
| International
organization participation: |
AsDB, CCC, CIS,
EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB,
IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM
(observer), ISO, ITU, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OIC,
OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Kanat SAUDABAYEV
chancery: 1401 16th Street, NW, Washington, DC
20036
telephone: [1] (202) 232-5488
FAX: [1] (202) 232-5845
consulate(s): New York |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Richard H. JONES
embassy: 99/97A Furmanova Street, Almaty,
Republic of Kazakhstan 480091
mailing address: American Embassy Almaty,
Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-7030
telephone: [7] (3272) 63-39-21, 50-76-23,
50-76-27 (emergency number)
FAX: [7] (3272) 63-38-83, 50-76-24 |
| Flag
description: |
sky blue
background representing the endless sky and a gold sun with
32 rays soaring above a golden steppe eagle in the center;
on the hoist side is a "national ornamentation" in
gold |
| Economy
- overview: |
Kazakhstan, the
second largest of the former Soviet republics in territory,
possesses enormous fossil fuel reserves as well as plentiful
supplies of other minerals and metals. It also is a large
agricultural - livestock and grain - producer. Kazakhstan's
industrial sector rests on the extraction and processing of
these natural resources and also on a growing
machine-building sector specializing in construction
equipment, tractors, agricultural machinery, and some
defense items. The breakup of the USSR in December 1991 and
the collapse of demand for Kazakhstan's traditional heavy
industry products resulted in a short-term contraction of
the economy, with the steepest annual decline occurring in
1994. In 1995-97, the pace of the government program of
economic reform and privatization quickened, resulting in a
substantial shifting of assets into the private sector. The
Caspian Pipeline Consortium agreement to build a new
pipeline from western Kazakhstan's Tengiz oil field to the
Black Sea increases prospects for substantially larger oil
exports in several years. Kazakhstan's economy again turned
downward in 1998 with a 2% decline in GDP due to slumping
oil prices and the August financial crisis in Russia. The
recovery of international oil prices in 1999, combined with
a well-timed tenge devaluation and a bumper grain harvest,
pulled the economy out of recession in 2000. Astana has
embarked upon an industrial policy designed to diversify the
economy away from overdependence on the oil sector by
developing light industry. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $85.6 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
10.5% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $5,000 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
10%
industry: 30%
services: 60% (1999 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
35% (1999 est.) |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
2.7%
highest 10%: 26.3% (1996) |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
13.4% (2000 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
8.8 million
(1997) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
industry 27%,
agriculture 23%, services 50% (1996) |
| Unemployment
rate: |
13.7% (1998 est.) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$3.1 billion
expenditures: $3.6 billion, including capital
expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
| Industries: |
oil, coal, iron
ore, manganese, chromite, lead, zinc, copper, titanium,
bauxite, gold, silver, phosphates, sulfur, iron and steel,
nonferrous metal, tractors and other agricultural machinery,
electric motors, construction materials |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
14.9% (2000 est.) |
| Electricity
- production: |
44.36 billion kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
87.12%
hydro: 12.65%
nuclear: 0.23%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
44.132 billion
kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
200 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
3.077 billion kWh
(1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
grain (mostly
spring wheat), cotton; wool, livestock |
| Exports: |
$8.8 billion
(f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
oil 40%, ferrous
and nonferrous metals, machinery, chemicals, grain, wool,
meat, coal |
| Exports
- partners: |
EU 23%, Russia
20%, China 8% (1999) |
| Imports: |
$6.9 billion
(f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
machinery and
parts, industrial materials, oil and gas, vehicles |
| Imports
- partners: |
Russia 37%, US,
Uzbekistan, Turkey, UK, Germany, Ukraine, South Korea (1999) |
| Debt
- external: |
$12.5 billion
(2000 est.) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$409.6 million
(1995) |
| Exchange
rates: |
tenge per US
dollar - 145.09 (January 2001), 142.13 (2000), 119.52
(1999), 78.30 (1998), 75.44 (1997), 67.30 (1996) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
1.818 million
(1997) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
11,202 (1997) |
| Telephone
system: |
general
assessment: service is poor; equipment antiquated
domestic: intercity by landline and microwave
radio relay; mobile cellular systems are available in most
of Kazakhstan
international: international traffic with other
former Soviet republics and China carried by landline and
microwave radio relay; with other countries by satellite and
by the Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic cable; satellite
earth stations - 2 Intelsat |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 60, FM 17,
shortwave 9 (1998) |
| Radios: |
6.47 million
(1997) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
12 (plus nine
repeaters) (1998) |
| Televisions: |
3.88 million
(1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.kz |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
NA |
| Internet
users: |
70,000 (2000) |
| Railways: |
total:
14,400 km in common carrier service; does not include
industrial lines
broad gauge: 14,400 km 1.520-m gauge (3,299 km
electrified) (1997) |
| Highways: |
total:
NA km
paved: 150,000 km (these roads are said to be
hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally
paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other
coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather)
(2000)
unpaved: NA km (these roads are made of
unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet
weather) |
| Waterways: |
3,900 km
note: on the Syrdariya (Syr Darya) and Ertis (Irtysh)
rivers |
| Pipelines: |
crude oil 2,850
km; refined products 1,500 km; natural gas 3,480 km (1992) |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Aqtau (Shevchenko),
Atyrau (Gur'yev), Oskemen (Ust-Kamenogorsk), Pavlodar, Semey
(Semipalatinsk) |
| Airports: |
449 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
28
over 3,047 m: 6
2,438 to 3,047 m: 14
1,524 to 2,437 m: 5
under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total:
421
over 3,047 m: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 18
1,524 to 2,437 m: 45
914 to 1,523 m: 101
under 914 m: 246 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
General Purpose
Forces (Army), Air Force, Border Guards, Navy, Republican
Guard |
| Military
manpower - military age: |
18 years of age |
| Military
manpower - availability: |
males age
15-49: 4,509,179 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - fit for military service: |
males age
15-49: 3,598,859 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - reaching military age annually: |
males:
163,628 (2001 est.) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$322 million
(FY99) |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
1.5% (FY99) |
| Disputes
- international: |
Caspian Sea
boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran,
Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan |
| Illicit
drugs: |
significant
illicit cultivation of cannabis and limited cultivation of
opium poppy and ephedra (for the drug ephedrone); limited
government eradication program; cannabis consumed largely in
the CIS; used as transshipment point for illicit drugs to
Russia, North America, and Western Europe from Southwest
Asia; developing heroin addiction problem |
|
