Kazakhstan

About Kazakhstan

Introduction

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 in 1991 caused many of these newcomers to emigrate. Kazakhstan's economy is larger than those of all the other Central Asian states combined largely due to the country's vast natural resources and a recent history of political stability. Current issues include: developing a cohesive national identity; expanding the development of the country's vast energy resources and exporting them to world markets; achieving a sustainable economic growth; diversifying the economy outside the oil, gas, and mining sectors; enhancing Kazakhstan's competitiveness; and strengthening relations with neighboring states and other foreign powers.

Geography

Location

Location: Central Asia, northwest of China; a small portion west of the Ural (Zhayyq) River in eastern-most Europe

Geographic Coordinates: 48 00 N, 68 00 E

Area

Total Area: 2,724,900 sq km Rank: 9

Land Area: 2,699,700 sq km

Water Area: 25,200 sq km

Comparison: slightly less than four times the size of Texas

Land Boundaries: 12,185 km

Bordering Countries: China 1,533 km, Kyrgyzstan 1,224 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)

Climate

continental, cold winters and hot summers, arid and semiarid

Terrain

vast flat steppe extending from the Volga in the west to the Altai Mountains in the east and from the plains of western Siberia in the north to oases and deserts of Central Asia in the south

Elevations

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: 8.28%

Permanent Crops: 0.05%

Other: 91.67% (2005)

Irrigated Land: 35,560 sq km (2003)

Renewable Water Resources: 109.6 cu km (1997)

Total Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural): 35 cu km/yr (2%/17%/82%)

Freshwater Withdrawal Per Capita: 2,360 cu m/yr (2000)

Environment

Natural Hazards: earthquakes in the south; mudslides around Almaty

Environmental Issues: radioactive or toxic chemical sites associated with former defense industries and test ranges scattered throughout the country pose health risks for humans and animals; industrial pollution is severe in some cities; because the two main rivers that 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

Environmental Agreements: Party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

Geography Notes

landlocked; Russia leases approximately 6,000 sq km of territory enclosing the Baykonur Cosmodrome; in January 2004, Kazakhstan and Russia extended the lease to 2050

People

Population: 15,399,437 (July 2010 est.) Rank: 62

Age Structure

0-14 years: 21.8% (male 1,717,469/female 1,643,920)

15-64 years: 70.2% (male 5,279,292/female 5,534,607)

65 years and over: 7.9% (male 426,494/female 797,655) (2010 est.)

Median Age: 28.4 years

Population Growth

Growth Rate: 0.392% (2010 est.) Rank: 166

Birth Rate: 16.6 births/1,000 population (2010 est.) Rank: 127

Death Rate: 9.39 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.) Rank: 73

Net Migration Rate: -3.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.) Rank: 148

Urbanization

Urban Population: 58% of total population (2008)

Rate of Urbanization: 1.2% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)

Life and Death

Infant Mortality Rate: 25.73 deaths/1,000 live births Rank: 85

Life Expectancy at Birth: 67.87 years Rank: 152

Fertility Rate: 1.87 children born/woman (2010 est.) Rank: 150

Health and Disease

HIV/AIDS - Adult Prevalence Rate: 0.1% (2007 est.) Rank: 121

People living with HIV/AIDS: 12,000 (2007 est.) Rank: 97

HIV/AIDS Deaths: fewer than 500 (2007 est.) Rank: 97

Nationality and Culture

Noun: Kazakhstani(s)

Adjective: Kazakhstani

Ethnic Groups: Kazakh (Qazaq) 53.4%, Russian 30%, Ukrainian 3.7%, Uzbek 2.5%, German 2.4%, Tatar 1.7%, Uighur 1.4%, other 4.9% (1999 census)

Religion: Muslim 47%, Russian Orthodox 44%, Protestant 2%, other 7%

Languages: Kazakh (Qazaq, state language) 64.4%, Russian (official, used in everyday business, designated the "language of interethnic communication") 95% (2001 est.)

Education

Literacy (Meaning, age 15 and over can read and write): 99.5% Male: 99.8% Female: 99.3% (1999 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education): 15 years Male: 15 years Female: 16 years (2007)

Education expenditures: 2.3% of GDP (2005) Rank: 163

Government

Country Name

Conventional Long Form: Republic of Kazakhstan

Conventional Short Form: Kazakhstan

Local Long Form: Qazaqstan Respublikasy

Local Short Form: Qazaqstan

Formerly: Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic

Government Type: republic; authoritarian presidential rule, with little power outside the executive branch

Capital: Astana Geographic Coordinates: 51 10 N, 71 25 E

Note: Kazakhstan is divided into two time zones

Administrative Divisions

14 provinces (oblystar, singular - oblys) and 3 cities* (qalalar, singular - qala); Almaty Oblysy, Almaty Qalasy*, Aqmola Oblysy (Astana), Aqtobe Oblysy, Astana Qalasy*, Atyrau Oblysy, Batys Qazaqstan Oblysy [West Kazakhstan] (Oral), Bayqongyr Qalasy [Baykonur]*, Mangghystau Oblysy (Aqtau), Ongtustik Qazaqstan Oblysy [South Kazakhstan] (Shymkent), Pavlodar Oblysy, Qaraghandy Oblysy, Qostanay Oblysy, Qyzylorda Oblysy, Shyghys Qazaqstan Oblysy [East Kazakhstan] (Oskemen), Soltustik Qazaqstan Oblysy (Petropavlovsk), Zhambyl Oblysy (Taraz)

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 (Baykonur, formerly Leninsk); in 2004, a new agreement extended the lease to 2050

Independence: 16 December 1991 (from the Soviet Union)

National holiday: Independence Day, 16 December (1991)

Constitution: first post-independence constitution adopted 28 January 1993; new constitution adopted by national referendum 30 August 1995

Legal system: based on Islamic law and Roman law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

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 Karim MASIMOV (since 10 January 2007); First Deputy Prime Minister Umirzak SHUKEYEV (since 3 March 2009), Deputy Prime Ministers Yerbol ORYNBAYEV (since 29 October 2007), Aset ISEKESHEV (since 12 March 2010)

Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president

Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held on 4 December 2005 (next to be held in 2012); prime minister and first deputy prime minister appointed by the president, with Mazhilis approval; note - constitutional amendments of May 2007 shortened the presidential term from seven years to five years and established a two-consecutive-term limit; changes will take effect after NAZARBAYEV's term ends; he, and only he, is allowed to run for president indefinitely

Election Results: Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV reelected president; percent of vote - Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV 91.1%, Zharmakhan A. TUYAKBAY 6.6%, Alikhan M. BAYMENOV 1.6%

Legislative Branch

bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (47 seats; 15 members are appointed by the president; 32 members elected by local assemblies; members serve six-year terms, but elections are staggered with half of the members up for re-election every three years) and the Mazhilis (107 seats; 9 out of the 107 Mazhilis members elected by the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan, a presidentially appointed advisory body designed to represent the country's ethnic minorities; non-appointed members are popularly elected to serve five-year terms)

Elections: Senate - (indirect) last held in October 2008 (next to be held in 2011); Mazhilis - last held on 18 August 2007 (next to be held in 2012)

Election Results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Nur Otan 16; Mazhilis - percent of vote by party - Nur-Otan 88.1%, NSDP 4.6%, Ak Zhol 3.3%, Auyl 1.6%, Communist People's Party 1.3%, Patriots Party 0.8% Ruhaniyat 0.4%; seats by party - Nur-Otan 98; note - parties must achieve a threshold of 7% of the electorate to qualify for seats in the Mazhilis

Judicial branch

Supreme Court (44 members); Constitutional Council (seven members)

Politics

Political Parties and Leaders: Adilet (Justice) [Maksut NARIKBAYEV, Zeynulla ALSHIMBAYEV, Serik ABDRAHMANOV, Bakhytbek AKHMETZHAN, Yerkin ONGARBAYEV, Tolegan SYDYKOV] (formerly Democratic Party of Kazakhstan); Agrarian and Industrial Union of Workers Block or AIST (Agrarian Party and Civic Party); Ak Zhol Party (Bright Path) [Alikhan BAYMENOV]; Alga [Vladimir KOZLOV] (unregistered); Auyl (Village) [Gani KALIYEV]; Azat Party [Bolat ABILOV] (formerly True Ak Zhol Party); Communist Party of Kazakhstan or KPK [Serikbolsyn ABDILDIN]; Communist People's Party of Kazakhstan [Vladislav KOSAREV]; National Social Democratic Party or NSDP [Zharmakhan TUYAKBAY]; Nur-Otan [Bakhytzhan ZHUMAGULOV] (the Agrarian, Asar, and Civic parties merged with Otan); Patriots' Party [Gani KASYMOV]; Rukhaniyat (Spirituality) [Altynshash ZHAGANOVA]

Political Pressure Groups and Leaders: Adil-Soz [Tamara KALEYEVA]; Almaty Helsinki Group [Ninel FOKINA]; Confederation of Free Trade Unions [Sergei BELKIN]; For Fair Elections [Yevgeniy ZHOVTIS, Sabit ZHUSUPOV, Sergey DUVANOV, Ibrash NUSUPBAYEV]; Kazakhstan International Bureau on Human Rights [Yevgeniy ZHOVTIS, executive director]; Pan-National Social Democratic Party of Kazakhstan [Zharmakhan TUYAKBAY]; Pensioners Movement or Pokoleniye [Irina SAVOSTINA, chairwoman]; Republican Network of International Monitors [Dos KUSHIM]; Transparency International [Sergey ZLOTNIKOV]

International Organization Participation: ADB, CICA, CIS, CSTO, EAEC, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, FAO, GCTU, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, SCO, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer), ZC

Flag Description: a gold sun with 32 rays above a soaring golden steppe eagle, both centered on a sky blue background; the hoist side displays a national ornamental pattern "koshkar-muiz" (the horns of the ram) in gold; the blue color is of religious significance to the Turkic peoples of the country, and so symbolizes cultural and ethnic unity; it also represents the endless sky as well as water; the sun, a source of life and energy, exemplifies wealth and plenitude; the sun's rays are shaped like grain, which is the basis of abundance and prosperity; the eagle has appeared on the flags of Kazakh tribes for centuries and represents freedom, power, and the flight to the future

Economy

Economy Overview: Kazakhstan, the largest of the former Soviet republics in territory, excluding Russia, possesses enormous fossil fuel reserves and plentiful supplies of other minerals and metals. It also has a large agricultural sector featuring livestock and grain. Kazakhstan's industrial sector is primarily focused on the extraction and processing of these natural resources. Kazakhstan enjoyed double-digit growth in 2000-01 and 8% or more per year in 2002-07 - thanks largely to its booming energy sector but also to economic reform, good harvests, and increased foreign investment; GDP growth slowed to 3.3% in 2008, and to 1% in 2009, however, as a result of declines in oil and metals prices and problems in the banking sector following the global financial crisis. In the energy sector, the opening of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium in 2001, from western Kazakhstan's Tengiz oilfield to the Black Sea, substantially raised export capacity. In 2006, Kazakhstan completed the Atasu-Alashankou portion, and, in 2009, the Kenkiyak-Kumkol portion of an oil pipeline to China that will extend from the country's Caspian coast eastward to the Chinese border, according to plans. The country has embarked upon an industrial policy designed to diversify the economy away from overdependence on the oil sector by developing its manufacturing potential. The policy changed the corporate tax code to favor domestic industry as a means to reduce the influence of foreign investment and foreign personnel. The government has engaged in several disputes with foreign oil companies over the terms of production agreements, most recently, with regard to the Kashagan project in 2007-08 and the Karachaganak project in 2009. Since 2007, Astana has provided financial support to the banking sector that has been struggling with poor asset quality and large foreign loans - problems that have been amplified by the global financial crisis in 2009.

Gross Domestic Product

GDP (purchasing power parity): $181.9 billion (2009 est.) Rank: 55

GDP - real growth rate: 1% (2009 est.) Rank: 98

GDP - per capita (PPP): $11,800 (2009 est.) Rank: 94

GDP - Composition by Sector: Agriculture: 6% Industry: 42.8% Services: 51.2% (2009 est.)

Labor Force

Labor Force: 8.7 million (2009 est.) Rank: 53

Labor force - by occupation: Agriculture: 31.5% Industry: 18.4% Services: 50% (2006)

Unemployment Rate: 6.3% (2009 est.) Rank: 59

Poverty

Population below poverty line: 12.1% (2008)

Commercial bank prime lending rate:

NA (31 December 2008 )

country comparison to the world: 67

$4.617 billion (31 December 2008 est.)

Transnational Issues

International Disputes: Kyrgyzstan has yet to ratify the 2001 boundary delimitation with Kazakhstan; field demarcation of the boundaries with Turkmenistan commenced in 2005, and with Uzbekistan in 2004; demarcation is scheduled to get underway with Russia in 2007; demarcation with China was completed in 2002; creation of a seabed boundary with Turkmenistan in the Caspian Sea remains under discussion; equidistant seabed treaties have been ratified with Azerbaijan and Russia in the Caspian Sea, but no resolution has been made on dividing the water column among any of the littoral states

Refugees and internally displaced persons - refugees (country of origin): 3,700 (Russia); 508 (Afghanistan) (2007)

Breaking News from Kazakhstan