Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan is located in Central Asia. The landlocked nation borders Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east. The city of Bishkek is the capital of Kyrgyzstan.

HISTORY:- The native Kyrgyz arrived in the land from the Turk. During the Russian invasion in 1900s, the Russians colonized much of the land. From 1916, the Kyrgyz people started rebellions against the Russians. In 1924, it became a part of the Federated Socialist Republic. In 1926, it was turned up as the autonomous republic. In 1936, Kyrgyzstan became a constituent republic within the USSR. After the dissolution of the USSR, the country declared its independence in 1991. Kyrgyzstan joined with the other ten soviet republics in the Commonwealth of Independent States in the same year. The nation joined the UN, the IMF, and the CSCE in 1992.

GEOGRAPHY:- Kyrgyzstan is located at 41 00 N, 75 00 E in Central Asia. The country spans through 198,500 sq km area in which 191,300 sq km and 7,200 sq km area captured by land masses and internal waters. Kyrgyzstan is a landlocked nation bordering China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. The lowest point is Kara-Daryya (Karadar'ya) (132 m) and the highest point is Jengish Chokusu (Pik Pobedy) (7,439 m). 90% of the nation comprises mountains, with some desert regions.

CLIMATE:- The climate of Kyrgyzstan varies from dry continental to polar in high Tien Shan to subtropical in the southwest (Fergana Valley), and temperate in the northern foothill zone.

GOVERNMENT:- Kyrgyzstan is a republic. The constitution was adopted on 5th May 1993. The legal system is modeled on the French and the Russian laws. The three major branches of the government are:

Executive branch comprises the President (chief of state), the Prime Minister (head of government), and the Cabinet of Ministers. The prime minister is nominated by the parliamentary majority party, if no such party exists, the president selects the party that will nominate the prime minister. The cabinet of ministers is proposed by the prime minister and appointed by the president while the defense and security ministers are appointed by the president.

Legislative branch comprises the unicameral Supreme Council (90 seats).

Judicial branch comprises the Supreme Court, the Constitutional Court, the local courts, and the Procurator-General.

The Democratic Movement of Kyrgyzstan, the “Erkindik” (Freedom) Party, the Republican Party of Labor and Unity, the “Sanjira” (Tree of Life) Party, the “Sodrujestvo” Party, the “Asaba” (Banner) Party, the “Ata-Meken” (Fatherland) Party, the Social Democratic Party, the Party of Communists of Kyrgyzstan, the “Moya Strana” (My Country) Party, the “Arnamyz” (Dignity) Party, the Union of Democratic Forces are some of the major political parties of Kyrgyzstan. Suffrage is universal at the age of 18.

President           Kurmanbek Bakiyev

Prime Minister    Igor Chudinov

ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS:- Kyrgyzstan is composed of 7 provinces and 1 city.

CULTURE:- One of the traditional but strange social characteristic of the country is bride kidnapping.

ECONOMY:- The poor economy of the nation is based on mostly cotton, tobacco, wool, and meat. The country is supported by financial aids form the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. Kyrgyzstan government is turning towards the market economy and introduces a value-added tax.

GDP/PPP (2007 est.): $10.5 billion; per capita $2,000.

Real growth rate: 8.2%.

Inflation: 10.2%.

Unemployment: 18% (2004 est.).

Arable land: 7%.

Agriculture: Tobacco, cotton, potatoes, vegetables, grapes, fruits and berries; sheep, goats, cattle, wool.

Labor force: 2.7 million (2000); agriculture 55%, industry 15%, services 30% (2000 est.).

Industries: Small machinery, textiles, food processing, cement, shoes, sawn logs, refrigerators, furniture, electric motors, gold, rare earth metals.

Natural resources: Abundant hydropower; significant deposits of gold and rare earth metals; locally exploitable coal, oil, and natural gas; other deposits of nepheline, mercury, bismuth, lead, and zinc.

Budget:  

Revenues: $920.8 million

Expenditures: $993.3 million (2007 est.)

Debt - external: $2.966 billion (30 June 2007)

Exports: $759 million f.o.b. (2005 est.): cotton, wool, meat, tobacco; gold, mercury, uranium, natural gas, hydropower; machinery; shoes.

Imports: $937.4 million f.o.b. (2005 est.): oil and gas, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs.

Major trading partners: UAE, Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Switzerland, Turkey (2004).

Monetary unit: Som

LANGUAGE:- Kyrgyz and Russian are the official languages of Kyrgyzstan spoken by  64.7% and 12.5% population respectively.

Other languages include:

Uzbek 13.6%

Dungun 1%

Other 8.2% (1999)

CITIES:- The city of Bishkek is the capital and the largest city of Kyrgyzstan. Other large cities are Osh, Cholpon Ata, Karakol.

POPULATION:- The population of the country is estimated 5,284,149 with an average growth rate of 1.4%.

Density per sq mi: 69

Literacy rate: 98.7% (1999 est.)

RACE:-

Kyrgyz 64.9%

Uzbek 13.8%

Russian 12.5%

Dungan 1.1%

Ukrainian 1%

Uygur 1%

Other 5.7% (1999)

RELIGION:-

Muslim 75%

Russian Orthodox 20%

Other 5%

HEALTH:-

Birth rate: 23.31 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Death rate: 6.97 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 32.3 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 69.12 years

Total fertility rate: 2.67 children born/woman (2008 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 200 (2003 est.)

Total expenditure on health per capita (Intl $, 2005): 113

UNICEF:- The National Conference on Child Poverty in the country announced elimination of children poverty as the nation’s priority in 2004. UNICEF in Kyrgyzstan focuses on reduction of infant mortality rate. UNICEF with its partners provided training in emergency obstetric and neonatal care and promoted breastfeeding in 27 baby friendly hospitals of the nation. UNICEF partners with the Ministry of Health to distribute vitamin A supplements to about half a million new mothers and under-5 children. The county is polio free although 3 measles cases have been reported in 2004. UNICEF trained health-care professionals and families, and translated resources into Kyrgyz and Russian to improve childhood development and parenting. UNICEF also works on salt iodization. It promotes the mass awareness on HIV in Kyrgyzstan.

TRANSPORTATION:-

Railways: 420 km (2002).

Highways: total: 18,500 km; paved: 16,854 km (including 140 km of expressways); unpaved: 1,646 km (1999 est.).

Waterways: 600 km (1990).

Ports and harbors: Balykchy (Ysyk-Kol or Rybach'ye).

Airports: 68 (2002).