Kazakhstan
republicIndependence 16 December 1991 (from the Soviet Union)
Kazakhstan as the 1994 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 121 fields, one of 34 editions from 1992 to 2025.
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Geography
Central Asia, between Russia and Uzbekistan, bordering on the Caspian | Sea and the Aral Sea
23 fieldsMap references
Asia, Commonwealth of Independent States - Central Asian States, Standard Time Zones of the World
total area
2,717,300 sq km
land area
2,669,800 sq km
comparative area
slightly less than four times the size of Texas
note
Kazakhstan borders the Aral Sea (1,015 km) and the Caspian Sea (1,894 km)
International disputes
Russia may dispute current de facto maritime border to midpoint of Caspian Sea from shore
Terrain
extends from the Volga to the Altai Mountains and from the plains in western Siberia to oasis and desert in Central Asia
Natural resources
major deposits of petroleum, coal, iron ore, manganese, chrome ore, nickel, cobalt, copper, molybdenum, lead, zinc, bauxite, gold, uranium
arable land
15%
permanent crops
NEGL %
meadows and pastures
57%
forest and woodland
4%
other
24%
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 salinization from faulty irrigation practices
natural hazards
NA
international agreements
signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change
People
21 fieldsPer 1,000 population(1994 est.)
total population
68.04 years
male
63.39 years
female
72.93 years (1994 est.)
noun
Kazakhstani(s)
adjective
Kazakhstani
Languages
Kazakh (Qazaqz) official language spoken by over 40% of population, Russian (language of interethnic communication) spoken by two-thirds of population and used in everyday business
total population
100%
male
100%
female
100%
by occupation
industry and construction 31%, agriculture and forestry 26%, other 43% (1992)
Government
Republic
34 fieldsLegislature, 177 seatsone dot, one seat
conventional long form
Republic of Kazakhstan
conventional short form
Kazakhstan
local long form
Kazakhstan Respublikasy
local short form
none
former
Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic
Administrative divisions
19 oblystar (singular - oblys) and 1 city (qalalar, singular - qala)*; Almaty*, Almaty Oblysy, Aqmola Oblysy, Aqtobe Oblysy, Atyrau Oblysy, Batys Qazaqstan Oblysy (Oral), Kokshetau Oblysy, Mangghystau Oblysy, Ongtustik Qazaqstan Oblysy (Shymkent), Qaraghandy Oblysy, Qostanay Oblysy, Qyzylorda Oblysy, Pavlodar Oblysy, Semey Oblysy, Shyghys Qazaqstan Oblysy (Oskemen; formerly Ust'-Kamenogorsk), Soltustik Qazaqstan Oblysy (Petropavl), Taldyqorghan Oblysy, Torghay Oblysy, Zhambyl Oblysy, Zhezqazghan Oblysy
note
names in parentheses are administrative centers when name differs from oblys name
chief of state
- President Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV (since NA April 1990);
- Vice President Yerik ASANBAYEV (since 1 December 1991);
- election last held 1 December 1991 (next to be held NA 1995);
- percent of vote by party NA;
- Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV ran unopposed
head of government
Prime Minister Sergey TERESHCHENKO (since 14 October 1991); First Deputy Prime Minister Arkezhan KAZHEGELDIN (since NA November 1993)
cabinet
Council of Ministers; appointed by the prime minister
Supreme Council
- elections last held 7 March 1994 (next to be held NA 1999);
- results - percent of vote by party NA;
- seats - (177 total) Union Peoples' Unity of Kazakhstan 33, Federation of Trade Unions of the Republic of Kazakhstan 11, People's Congress of Kazakhstan Party 9, Socialist Party of Kazakhstan 8, Peasant Union of the Republic Kazakhstan 4, Social Movement "LAD" 4, Organization of Veterans 1, Union of Youth of Kazakhstan 1, Democratic Committee for Human Rights 1, Association of Lawyers of Kazakhstan 1, International Public Committee "Aral-Asia-Kazakhstan" 1, Congress of Entrepreneurs of Kazakhstan 1, Deputies of the 12th Supreme Soviet 40, independents 62
Political parties and leaders
- Peoples Unity Movement (PUU), Kuanysh SULTANOV, chairman;
- Peoples Congress, Olzhas SULEYMENOV, chairman;
- Kazakhstan Socialist Party (SPK; former Communist Party), Piotr SVOIK, co-chairman;
- Republican Party (Azat), Kamal ORMANTAYEV, chairman;
- Democratic Progress (Russian) Party, Alexandra DOKUCHAYEVA, chairman;
- Union Peoples' Unity of Kazakhstan (SNEK);
- Federation of Trade Unions of the Republic of Kazakhstan;
- Peasant Union of the Republic Kazakhstan;
- Social Movement LAD (Slavic Rebirth Society), V. MIKHAYLOV, chairman;
- Union of Youth of Kazakhstan;
- Democratic Committee for Human Rights;
- Association of Lawyers of Kazakhstan;
- International Public Committee "Aral-Asia-Kazakhstan";
- Congress of Entrepreneurs of Kazakhstan;
- Deputies of the 12th Supreme Soviet
Other political or pressure groups
Independent Trade Union Center (Birlesu; an association of independent trade union and business associations), Leonid SOLOMIN, president
Member of
CCC, CIS, CSCE, EBRD, ECO, ESCAP, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, IOD, NACC, OIC (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO
chief of mission
Ambassador Tuleutai SULEYMENOV
chancery
3421 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20007
chief of mission
Ambassador William H. COURTNEY
embassy
99/97 Furmanova Street, Almaty, Republic of Kazakhstan 480012
mailing address
American Embassy Almaty, c/o Department of State, Washington, DC, 20521-7030
Flag
- 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 yellow
Economy
Kazakhstan, the second largest of the former Soviet states in | territory, possesses vast oil, coal, rare metals, and agricultural | resources.
26 fieldsOverview
Kazakhstan, the second largest of the former Soviet states in territory, possesses vast oil, coal, rare metals, and agricultural resources. While the economy is gradually making the transition from a Soviet command system to a market system, strong elements of state control persist including government ownership of most economic assets and a continued system of mandatory state procurement for the key products such as grain and energy;
likewise, agriculture remains largely collectivized. On the other hand, new businesses are forming rapidly, the economy is opening to foreign investment, and 12% of state-owned commercial enterprises have been privatized. In 1993, a three-year industrial privatization program was launched;
an independent currency was successfully introduced; and two large joint ventures were established with western oil companies. These far-reaching structural transformations have resulted in a cumulative decline in national income of more than 30% since 1990. Loose monetary policies have kept the inflation rate high, averaging 28% per month for 1993 and accelerating at the end with the disruption caused by a new currency.
Since the introduction of its independent currency in November 1993, the government has renewed its commitment to fiscal discipline and accelerating economic reform. However, growing economic hardship and rising ethnic tensions between Kazakhs and Russians over the division of economic assets will likely lead to strong pressure to backtrack.
National product
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $60.3 billion (1993 estimate from the UN International Comparison Program, as extended to 1991 and published in the World Bank's World Development Report 1993; and as extrapolated to 1993 using official Kazakhstani statistics, which are very uncertain because of major economic changes since 1990)
revenues
$NA
expenditures
$NA, including capital expenditures of $1.76 billion (1991 est.)
commodities
oil, ferrous and nonferrous metals, chemicals, grain, wool, meat (1992)
partners
Russia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan
commodities
machinery and parts, industrial materials, oil and gas (1992)
partners
Russia and other former Soviet republics, China
capacity
19,135,000 kW
production
81.3 billion kWh
consumption per capita
4,739 kWh (1992)
Industries
extractive 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
Agriculture
- accounts for almost 40% of net material product;
- employs about 26% of the labor force;
- grain, mostly spring wheat;
- meat, cotton, wool
Illicit drugs
- illicit cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy;
- mostly for CIS consumption;
- limited government eradication program;
- used as transshipment point for illicit drugs to Western Europe and North America from Central and Southwest Asia
recipient
approximately $1 billion in foreign credits to become available in 1994
Communications
14 fieldstotal
189,000 km
paved and graveled
108,100 km
unpaved
earth 80,900 km (1990)
total
365
usable
152
with permanent-surface runways
49
with runways over 3,659 m
8
with runways 2,440-3,659 m
38
with runways 1,220-2,439 m
71
Telecommunications
- telephone service is poor, with only about 17 telephones for each 100 persons in urban areas and 7.6 telephones per 100 persons in rural areas;
- of the approximately 2.2 million telephones, Almaty has 184,000;
- broadcast receivers - TVs 4,750,000, radios 4,088,000, radio receiver systems with multiple speakers for program diffusion 6,082,000;
- international traffic with other former USSR republics and China carried by landline and microwave, and with other countries by satellite and through 8 international telecommunications circuits at the Moscow international gateway switch;
- satellite earth stations - INTELSAT and Orbita (TV receive only);
- new satellite ground station established at Almaty with Turkish financial help (December 1992) with 2500 channel band width
Defense Forces
Army, National Guard, Security Forces (internal and border troops)
3 fieldsManpower availability
- males age 15-49 4,432,716;
- fit for military service 3,554,209;
- reach military age (18) annually 154,989 (1994 est.)
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Kazakhstan.” The World Factbook 1994. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/kazakhstan/1994.